Inheritance Act Claims

Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 – (‘Inheritance Act’)

When a person dies, their estate will be distributed either according to the terms of their will or, if there is no will, then under the Intestacy Rules. But what happens if there is no will or the will does not make provision for you?

When a person makes a will they are entitled to leave their estate to whomever they wish. However, if ‘reasonable financial provision’ has not been made either because there is no will and the Intestacy Rules apply, or there is a will but someone has been left out, then certain classes of individuals can apply to the court under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (‘the Inheritance Act’) for reasonable financial provision to be made from the deceased's estate.

Who can bring an Inheritance Act Claim:

To be able to bring a claim under the Inheritance Act you will need to fall into one of the following categories of individuals:

a spouse or civil partner of the deceased;
a former spouse or civil partner of the deceased who has not remarried or entered into a new civil partnership;
co-habitants who during the whole period of two years ending immediately before the date when the deceased died, was living
- (a) in the same household as the deceased and
- (b) as the husband or wife of the deceased;
a child of the deceased (including adult children);
a person treated as a child of the family; or
dependants of the deceased.

If you fall into one of the above categories this does not mean that you will automatically be eligible for provision from the estate, the Court will also need to consider other factors including your financial circumstances, the financial needs of the other beneficiaries and the nature of your relationship with the deceased.

A claim under the Inheritance Act must be brought within 6 months of the date of the Grant of Probate and therefore, we would always advise that you seek immediate legal advice to determine whether you are eligible to make a claim and your next steps.

Our specialist Inheritance Dispute Solicitors are able to advise:

those who wish to make a claim for financial provision
beneficiaries; and
those who wish to defend an Inheritance Act claim

Why Pearson Solicitors

At Pearson Solicitors, we offer a free initial consultation to assess your Inheritance Act Claim and discuss the next steps with you.

We will consider all funding options including if we can conduct your claim on a No Win, No Fee basis.