Sisters lose battle over inheritance tax

10:43am Tuesday 29th April 2008

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Battling sisters Joyce and Sybil Burden have lost a last ditch effort to get what they see as unfair British inheritance laws changed.

The spinsters fear that when one dies the other will have to sell their home at Ogbourne St George to pay inhertance tax.

They took their fight right through the British judicial system.

After losing in the court of appeal their final bid to have the law changed was made in the European Court of Human Rights.

Today it was revealed that all of their years of legal battle had been in vain and that they had lost their final appeal.

In a 15-2 vote, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled that Joyce and Sybil Burden, do not face unfair discrimination under UK inheritance tax rules.

The sisters Joyce, 89 and Sybil 81 were left moderately wealthy by the death of their father.

They designed the home in which they live more that 40 years ago. It cost £7,000 to build, stands in 30 acres and is probably worth more than £1 million today.

The sisters are expected to express their disappointment today through their Swindon lawyers Thring, Townsend, Lee and Pembertons and they have declined to give any interviews.