Monika Byrska

Specialisms & expertise

Monika advises on all types of contentious trust and probate matters including: 

• Will challenges
• Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for family and Dependants) Act 1975 (“Inheritance Act claims”)
• Disputes relating to administration of estates and trusts
• Actions against trustees and personal representatives
• Promissory estoppel claims
• Trust disputes between co-owners of a property.  

Client stories & examples of work

• Acted for a beneficiary of a trust based overseas in her claim against the trustees, who refused to pay over a trust asset worth in the range of £2 million on the basis that the foreign trust instrument entitling my client to the asset, was invalid 
• Secured a provision for a victim of child sex abuse in her claim under the Inheritance Act against the estate of her abuser
• Successfully negotiated settlement between a father and his two sons in a dispute over the beneficial entitlement to a property previously owned by the father and mother jointly.  
• Represented an executor in a claim to propound as valid a lost Will of the deceased
• Secured a provision for an unmarried same sex partner in his Inheritance Act claim against the estate of his celebrity deceased partner 
• Successfully defended a claim, in which my client’s step-siblings were trying to admit to probate an invalid will of my client’s father.  The successful defence meant my client became the sole beneficiary of the father’s £3.5 million intestate estate, with assets located in 3 different jurisdictions.  

Types of client

Monika represents executors, administrators, trustees and beneficiaries regardless of whether they intend to commence a dispute or whether they are on the receiving end of a claim.

Achievements & other appointments 

Monika is a full member of the Association of Contentious Trust and Probate Specialists (ACTAPS) and an associate member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).  She holds a STEP Advanced Certificate in Administration of Estates, Advanced Certificate in Cross Border Estates (awarded with distinction) and Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes (also awarded with distinction). She is also a member of the STEP Contentious Trusts and Estates Special Interest Group. Monika is also a member of ConTrA, a network for Contentious Trusts Associates and is listed as a Citywealth Leader. 

Monika is ranked as Up and Coming in Chambers High Net Worth Guide where they quote "she's really good, she is incredibly personable. She is always very helpful and able to make things easier for the client; she manages to make everything sound simple, even when it often isn't." In The Legal 500 (2019) Monika is noted to be “very straightforward and capable – she handles complex cases well”. 

Profile

With a background in languages and interpretation, Monika completed a Masters degree in European Politics Business and Law and re-qualified to become a solicitor.  She was admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales in September 2010.  Having worked at Anthony Gold, a specialised litigation firm based in London Bridge, she joined Thomson Snell and Passmore as a Partner in March 2019. 

Monika is bilingual in Polish and English and able to converse in German and Spanish. 

Monika is a very effective negotiator with sound experience in all forms of alternative dispute resolution, but where necessary is also an eloquent litigator with a proven track record of cases in the County Courts, the High Court and the Privy Council.