Housekeepers win £15m court battle

The will of former city councillor Ethel Mary Good, of Woodstock Road, was bitterly contested by her family, led by her nephew William Good.

But Mr Justice Rimer yesterday dismissed accusations that Portuguese live-in housekeeper Nativadade Carapeto, 66, and her evangelical minister husband, Vasco -- who looked after Miss Good for more than 20 years -- had subjected Miss Good to "undue influence" before she made her will in their favour.

Seven of Miss Good's nephews and nieces had accused the Carapetos of pressuring their aunt into leaving most of her estate, including a large portfolio investment, to them in a will in May 1999.

Oxford University graduate Miss Good, who was registered blind and disabled after having polio as a child, spent most of her time in her home and depended on her housekeepers.

She had been the beneficiary of a family trust and had made a will in April 1999, leaving the Carapetos £300,000 and her home to her family, the court heard.

But she later destroyed it and wrote another will, leaving almost everything to her carers. Relations with her family soon deteriorated.

Miss Good, who never married or had children, died, aged 87, on January 3, 2000.

Her nephew William Good, 50, told the court he was increasingly excluded from her life because the Carapetos wanted to control her, and whenever he tried to phone the line was engaged.

His barrister, Michael Furniss, argued Miss Good neither knew nor approved the wording of the will.

Miss Good's niece Anne Crawley claimed the Carapetos took over a room in the house to prevent relatives from staying.

But the Carapetos' counsel, Vivian Chapman, told the court this was not part of a conspiracy. The court was told the couple had devotedly cared for their employer as her health failed.

Mr Justice Rimer said: "I have found, and have no doubt, that she was genuinely very fond of the Carapetos. They were on hand day and night."