KEY POINTS

• Through his legal team Simon Roomans has testified to eleven witnesses in order to demonstrate the invalidity of his father’s 2022 will.
• The family of the deceased suggests Jacobus Roomans lacked mental capacity when a named beneficiary manipulated him into making decisions.
• The defendants reject these assertions by insisting the deceased performed his actions deliberately while remaining of sound mental faculties.

The Lagos high court at Tafawa Balewa square restarts legal proceedings today regarding Jacobus Roomans’ contested will while Simon Roomans prepares to submit testimony from eleven witnesses.

Three of the dispute’s claimants including Simon Roomans and his brothers Kyle and Daniel contest their father’s July 5 2022 will which transferred his entire estate to Ms. Maria Mahat and her son Romario Roomans.

The challengers in this case claim their deceased father failed to display sufficient mental ability

A sworn statement from Simon Roomans declared the lack of testamentary capacity in his late father before he created the disputed will.

The claimants present evidence to question the legitimacy of the July 5, 2022 will because my late father developed mental incapacity between 2010 and the time of the will.

Family members believe the will’s origins stem from the third defendant Maria Mahat’s improper influence. Jacobus Roomans’ beneficiaries request a court order to declare his death maintained an intestate nature.

Defendants maintain will is valid in the Roomans will dispute

The lawsuit names Mr. Luke Ilogu who holds a SAN title alongside Mr. Stanley Onuosa as executor and Ms. Maria Mahat both joined by Master Romario Roomans as beneficiaries. In addition to the executors and beneficiaries Mr. Luke Ilogu, SAN, Mr. Stanley Onuosa and Ms. Maria Mahat, the Probate Registrar of the Lagos High Court appears as another defendant.

Mahat filed an opposing affidavit which adamantly denies misconduct and maintains that Jacobus Roomans possessed full mental capacity at the time of will execution. Her evidence includes testimony from six witnesses who will validate her counterclaims in the Roomans will dispute.

Probate dispute timeline

On March 5, 2024, The Roomans brothers took two legal steps which included a caveat and notice to prevent probate from being granted. Subsequently the executors pursued legal action against the caveator after posting a warning notice to him.

Legal proceedings remain unresolved because probate authorities have yet to issue any formal grant but the claimants want court protection against estate interference until the dispute reaches resolution.