Inheritance claims made by grown up children
One of the most commonly asked questions we receive is, ‘Can a grown up child make an inheritance claim against their parent’s estate?’
The simple answer to this question is, yes. Grown up children are entitled to make an inheritance claim against their parent’s estate, as this real-life case study shows.
Our client, Mrs C, brought a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 on the basis that the Will of her late father, Mr C, failed to make reasonable financial provision for her maintenance. She received nothing under her father’s Will as his daughter, the entire estate passing to one of her sisters, Mrs A.
Accompanying the Will was an undated letter of wishes in which Mr C expressly excluded Mrs C from his estate.
It was Mrs C’s case that while she had been estranged from her father for many years, this was caused by her mother’s deceit and conduct. Mrs C made attempts at reconciliation, but she said these had been rebuffed by her father after her mother’s death.
Mrs C therefore instructed us to bring an inheritance claim against her father’s estate and we agreed to work on a No Win, No Fee basis.
Mrs C was in financial need, which was a strong a factor in favour of an award of money from the estate. That said, her sister, Mrs A was also in financial need. The estate was very modest and Mrs A also made a claim under the Inheritance Act.
The fact that Mrs C was estranged from her father was not in itself a bar to her bringing an Inheritance Act claim as a grown up child.
Mrs C’s claim was resolved through negotiation on the basis that she received a an out of court settlement, plus her legal costs. This was a sensible approach to take as four different firms of solicitors were involved in the inheritance dispute and the legal costs were at risk of consuming the entire estate.
If you would like to know more about the subject, ‘Can a grown up child make an inheritance claim against their parent’s estate?’ then call our FREE legal helpline on 0333 888 0407 or send us an email.