The police are currently investigating my father for historical child abuse against me (I’m 37 now) and for domestic abuse against my mother (physical, psychological, sexual, financial) – both with the total support of my siblings.
When he found out that we were pursuing legal action against him, he changed his will to exclude all of us.
The estate is sizeable but we don’t rely on him for financial assistance.
All four of us have been in therapy for years prior to reporting the matter to the police for the trauma and debilitating effects of his behaviour throughout our lives.
I know he is still alive and so this is all theoretical, but would there be any scope for us to challenge his will? He’s leaving everything to his childhood friends son.
We are not aware of any legislation or other legal principle that would apply to force someone, even if they had been accused of crimes against their family, to amend or change their Will to leave anything to such individuals. In fact, in this jurisdiction, the principle of testamentary freedom takes precedence. This is the right for anyone to make a Will directing how their assets are to be dealt with when they die. However, some safeguards do exist. For example, the law does recognise that some people, such as the immediate family of or those financially dependant on the deceased, may have a need for financial maintenance from the estate. Such an application could be made under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975.
Likewise, we are also not aware of any principles that might apply which would mean that a Will would not be valid, providing that all of the “normal” requirements to create a valid Will were observed.
So far as your father is found guilty of offences, there may be recourse for you during his lifetime for damages via both the civil and criminal law. So far as compensation or damages were awarded and became a debt owing by him to any victims, it is possible that the debt would have to be discharged from his estate, if it remained unpaid at the time of his death, before any other gifts in the Will were paid. However, you should not rely on this and we cannot provide legal advice on our website. Whether or not this would happen would also depend on what the estate comprised of (i.e. what assets and liabilities there were) at the time of death, which is not something that can realistically be predicted. You should consider taking legal advice on this point, or taking advantage of victim support procedures that may exist.
My mother passed away on 10.1.23 . The new will dated 13.10.22 states that no provision has been made for me (her daughter) . Previously I would have inherited ⅓ . Estate estimated at £300,000. I have 2 Siblings, each getting ⅓. My children have been left ⅙ each. Mother told me 6 months ago that I would have a trust of approx £30,000. Nothing in will. I am on benefits , mental health struggling on £135 a week Both brothers are solvent and own their own houses.
Thank you for your comment and we are sorry for your loss.
It sounds as though your mother changed her Will to leave what she intended to leave to you previously to your children in equal shares. Someone is entitled to change their Will during their lifetime. Generally, only if there is undue influence or a lack of mental/testamentary capacity would a Will be capable of being challenged as invalid. This is generally a high burden to prove.
If you are in financial difficulty and require maintenance, there may be scope for you to make an application under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1979. In very broad terms certain categories of people (the children of the deceased being one category) can apply for something out of the estate if the Will does not make reasonable financial provision for them.
I wondered if you could please help? My estranged father died one year ago, but by pure chance I only found out last week. No family on his side got in touch to tell me about it. I have a feeling that I was not a written into his will in any way. Can I contest this? I realise that a claim must be made within 6 months but as I mentioned, I didn’t even know he’d passed away. Thank you.
Thank you for your comment. Please accept our condolences.
The starting point would be to ascertain whether a Grant of Representation has been issued in respect of your father’s estate, this can be done by a search at the Probate Registry, from this we will be able to see if your father died intestate (without a Will) or whether he died testate (with a Will).
If your father died intestate then, depending on the value of his estate and the family structure, you may be entitled to a share of his estate. If he died with a Will, and you are mentioned in it, you may be able to obtain a copy of this from the executors or at least confirmation of this.
If there is no grant of representation yet, you might need to consider entering a standing search at the Probate Registry. This will notify you when a grant is issued and therefore when the six month time limit for pursuing an application under the Inheritance Act commences. We have assumed that this is what you mean by “challenging” the Will. Normally a “challenge” to a Will would relate to its validity. An application under the Inheritance Act is not a challenge to the Will in this respect, it is an application for maintenance from the estate. What is broadly relevant in such matters is the financial positions of the parties involved. Perceived moral obligations are given little weight, unless promises or assurances were made during the deceased’s lifetime which the promise acted on to their detriment, in which case a different type of claim may arise.
Although there is a strict six month time limit for an application under the Inheritance Act, such an application can be made out of time with the Court’s permission. However, this is not always easy and it would not be sufficient to merely show that the only reason that an application was not pursued earlier was because someone was unaware of the death. The applicant will have to can show that there is a good claim and identify the consequences of permission not being granted. You state that you were estranged from your father and there are a number of cases on this point. Sometimes the estrangement can be such that in extreme cases, this factor will defeat an application. More often than not, the issue of estrangement has an impact on the value of the claim. The circumstances of the matter have to be considered very carefully, and this normally includes considering the conduct of the parties both during and after the date of death.
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Hello
The police are currently investigating my father for historical child abuse against me (I’m 37 now) and for domestic abuse against my mother (physical, psychological, sexual, financial) – both with the total support of my siblings.
When he found out that we were pursuing legal action against him, he changed his will to exclude all of us.
The estate is sizeable but we don’t rely on him for financial assistance.
All four of us have been in therapy for years prior to reporting the matter to the police for the trauma and debilitating effects of his behaviour throughout our lives.
I know he is still alive and so this is all theoretical, but would there be any scope for us to challenge his will? He’s leaving everything to his childhood friends son.
Thank you for your comment.
We are not aware of any legislation or other legal principle that would apply to force someone, even if they had been accused of crimes against their family, to amend or change their Will to leave anything to such individuals. In fact, in this jurisdiction, the principle of testamentary freedom takes precedence. This is the right for anyone to make a Will directing how their assets are to be dealt with when they die. However, some safeguards do exist. For example, the law does recognise that some people, such as the immediate family of or those financially dependant on the deceased, may have a need for financial maintenance from the estate. Such an application could be made under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975.
Likewise, we are also not aware of any principles that might apply which would mean that a Will would not be valid, providing that all of the “normal” requirements to create a valid Will were observed.
So far as your father is found guilty of offences, there may be recourse for you during his lifetime for damages via both the civil and criminal law. So far as compensation or damages were awarded and became a debt owing by him to any victims, it is possible that the debt would have to be discharged from his estate, if it remained unpaid at the time of his death, before any other gifts in the Will were paid. However, you should not rely on this and we cannot provide legal advice on our website. Whether or not this would happen would also depend on what the estate comprised of (i.e. what assets and liabilities there were) at the time of death, which is not something that can realistically be predicted. You should consider taking legal advice on this point, or taking advantage of victim support procedures that may exist.
My mother passed away on 10.1.23 . The new will dated 13.10.22 states that no provision has been made for me (her daughter) . Previously I would have inherited ⅓ . Estate estimated at £300,000. I have 2 Siblings, each getting ⅓. My children have been left ⅙ each. Mother told me 6 months ago that I would have a trust of approx £30,000. Nothing in will. I am on benefits , mental health struggling on £135 a week Both brothers are solvent and own their own houses.
Thank you for your comment and we are sorry for your loss.
It sounds as though your mother changed her Will to leave what she intended to leave to you previously to your children in equal shares. Someone is entitled to change their Will during their lifetime. Generally, only if there is undue influence or a lack of mental/testamentary capacity would a Will be capable of being challenged as invalid. This is generally a high burden to prove.
If you are in financial difficulty and require maintenance, there may be scope for you to make an application under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1979. In very broad terms certain categories of people (the children of the deceased being one category) can apply for something out of the estate if the Will does not make reasonable financial provision for them.
I wondered if you could please help? My estranged father died one year ago, but by pure chance I only found out last week. No family on his side got in touch to tell me about it. I have a feeling that I was not a written into his will in any way. Can I contest this? I realise that a claim must be made within 6 months but as I mentioned, I didn’t even know he’d passed away. Thank you.
Thank you for your comment. Please accept our condolences.
The starting point would be to ascertain whether a Grant of Representation has been issued in respect of your father’s estate, this can be done by a search at the Probate Registry, from this we will be able to see if your father died intestate (without a Will) or whether he died testate (with a Will).
If your father died intestate then, depending on the value of his estate and the family structure, you may be entitled to a share of his estate. If he died with a Will, and you are mentioned in it, you may be able to obtain a copy of this from the executors or at least confirmation of this.
If there is no grant of representation yet, you might need to consider entering a standing search at the Probate Registry. This will notify you when a grant is issued and therefore when the six month time limit for pursuing an application under the Inheritance Act commences. We have assumed that this is what you mean by “challenging” the Will. Normally a “challenge” to a Will would relate to its validity. An application under the Inheritance Act is not a challenge to the Will in this respect, it is an application for maintenance from the estate. What is broadly relevant in such matters is the financial positions of the parties involved. Perceived moral obligations are given little weight, unless promises or assurances were made during the deceased’s lifetime which the promise acted on to their detriment, in which case a different type of claim may arise.
Although there is a strict six month time limit for an application under the Inheritance Act, such an application can be made out of time with the Court’s permission. However, this is not always easy and it would not be sufficient to merely show that the only reason that an application was not pursued earlier was because someone was unaware of the death. The applicant will have to can show that there is a good claim and identify the consequences of permission not being granted. You state that you were estranged from your father and there are a number of cases on this point. Sometimes the estrangement can be such that in extreme cases, this factor will defeat an application. More often than not, the issue of estrangement has an impact on the value of the claim. The circumstances of the matter have to be considered very carefully, and this normally includes considering the conduct of the parties both during and after the date of death.
If you believe you have a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 – see our article here: https://cunningtons.co.uk/inheritance-act-claims-adult-children/ – then please do get in contact and we will be able to discuss the circumstances of your particular case.