The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 allows certain people to make a claim for reasonable financial provision from a deceased person’s estate, but only if circumstances permit it.
What those circumstances amount to varies from case to case, but who can make a claim under the Inheritance Act?
There are several classes of applicants who can make a claim under the Inheritance Act:
1. Spouse/civil partner
The spouse or civil partner of the deceased person may make a claim under the Inheritance Act.
2. Former spouse/civil partner
The ex-spouse or civil partner is also able to make a claim provided:
- They have not remarried or entered into a new civil partnership; and/or
- There is no bar to them making a claim under the Inheritance Act contained within the terms of the divorce.
3. Cohabitee
The cohabitee must satisfy a particular test in order to make a claim under the Inheritance Act, namely they must have:
- Lived in the same household as the deceased;
- Lived as the husband or wife of the deceased; and
- Had continuously cohabited for at least two years immediately preceding the death of the deceased.
4. Child of the deceased
A child is defined not only as a biological child of the deceased but also includes adopted children and, for deaths after 1 October 2014, any person who was treated as a child of the deceased.
This category can extend to adult children who have not financially relied on the deceased for many years. This has been a source of much debate and litigation especially in light of the case Ilott v Blue Cross.
5. Dependant of the deceased
A dependant is someone who was maintained by the deceased in whole or in part, immediately before their death .
What amounts to maintenance is infinitely variable. Minor maintenance will not be enough to satisfy the test and the deceased must have been making a substantial contribution in money (or money’s worth) towards the reasonable needs of the claimant. The deceased would typically have assumed a settled responsibility for the financial well-being of the claimant.
How Nelsons can help
If you have any questions in relation to the subjects discussed in this article, please contact our expert Inheritance Disputes team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
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