Inheritance Act claim barristers.
Specialist counsel for claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. Reasonable financial provision for spouses, cohabitees, adult children and dependants. Fixed fees, direct access accepted.
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 is one of the most important pieces of family and succession legislation on the statute book. It gives the court the power to make provision from a deceased person's estate for a defined class of family members and dependants whose reasonable financial needs were not met by the will or the intestacy rules. It is used every year by surviving spouses cut out of an unfair will, by cohabitees excluded from an estate because they never married the deceased, by adult children left with nothing while other siblings inherited, and by dependants who were being financially supported by the deceased at the time of death.
The mechanics of an Inheritance Act claim are technical. The strict six-month deadline from the grant runs whether or not the applicant knows about it. The claim has to be pleaded properly, with a full witness statement addressing the section 3 factors and clear evidence of the applicant's income, capital, needs and reasonable expectations. The court has very wide powers and equally wide discretion, so the quality of the advocacy at the case management hearing, at any mediation and at the final hearing directly drives the size of the award.
Clerk&Counsel places BSB-registered counsel with real experience of Inheritance Act work: Chancery specialists who understand the statutory framework, family finance practitioners familiar with the divorce yardstick relied on in spousal claims, and general Chancery juniors for smaller claims where a fixed-fee direct access instruction is the most efficient route. We do not charge clients for using our service. Our fees are paid by the barrister and clients are never obliged to instruct the barrister we introduce.
Who can claim under the 1975 Act.
Section 1 of the Act sets out the six categories of eligible applicant. The most common are the surviving spouse or civil partner, cohabitees who lived with the deceased as spouse for at least two years immediately before death, and children of the deceased including adult children of any age. Grandchildren and other dependants can claim under the maintenance limb where they can show the deceased was maintaining them, financially, immediately before death.
For a spouse or civil partner, the standard is not limited to maintenance. The court asks what provision it would be reasonable for the applicant to receive whether or not for maintenance, and the divorce yardstick, what the applicant would have received on divorce, is directly relevant. For every other class of applicant the standard is limited to reasonable financial provision for maintenance, and the exercise is closer to a needs-based assessment.
- Surviving spouses and civil partners.
- Former spouses and civil partners who have not remarried or entered a new civil partnership.
- Cohabitees who lived with the deceased as spouse or civil partner for at least two years immediately before death.
- Children of the deceased, including adult children of any age.
- Persons treated by the deceased as a child of the family in relation to any marriage or civil partnership.
- Any person being maintained wholly or partly by the deceased immediately before death.
What the court considers.
Section 3 sets out the factors the court must take into account in every claim: the financial resources and financial needs of the applicant, of other applicants and of the beneficiaries; any obligations and responsibilities of the deceased towards the applicant or beneficiaries; the size and nature of the net estate; any physical or mental disability of the applicant or beneficiaries; and any other matter, including the conduct of the parties, the court considers relevant.
For spousal claims there are additional factors: the age of the applicant, the duration of the marriage or civil partnership, and the contribution made by the applicant to the welfare of the family, including any contribution by looking after the home or caring for the family. For cohabitees, the court also considers the age of the applicant, the duration of the cohabitation and the contribution to the welfare of the family. For children and children of the family, the manner in which the applicant was being or might have been educated or trained is expressly relevant.
Six months from the grant.
The six-month deadline in section 4 is one of the strictest procedural rules in civil litigation. It runs from the date of the grant of probate or letters of administration and expires whether or not the applicant knew of the grant or of the possibility of a claim. The court can extend time under section 4 but the discretion is exercised sparingly and requires a good reason for the delay, an arguable claim on the merits, prompt action once the applicant became aware of the position and consideration of any prejudice to the beneficiaries and personal representatives.
In practice, if the six-month deadline is approaching the position can usually be protected by a standstill agreement with the personal representatives, a formal protective letter of claim or, if necessary, a protective issue of proceedings within time to be stayed pending negotiation. Counsel involvement at this stage is comparatively cheap and buys the time needed to prepare the claim properly.
Briefing us on an Inheritance Act claim.
When you brief us on an Inheritance Act claim, we:
- Run conflict checks against the deceased, the estate and the personal representatives.
- Ask for the will (or intestacy position), the grant, an outline of the estate and a note of the applicant's financial position.
- Shortlist counsel matched to the size and complexity of the claim: senior Chancery counsel for large spouse or trust cases, generalist juniors for straightforward adult child claims.
- Confirm fixed fees for initial advice, the letter of claim and, in due course, mediation and hearing attendance.
- Handle Public Access client care paperwork digitally where suitable.
Six-month deadline approaching?
Send a short brief with the date of the grant, your relationship to the deceased and an outline of the estate. A clerk will come back same working day where the deadline is close.
Common questions.
What is an Inheritance Act claim?
An Inheritance Act claim is a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 for reasonable financial provision from the estate of a person who has died domiciled in England and Wales. The claim is available where the disposition of the deceased's estate, by their will, on intestacy or by a combination of the two, does not make reasonable financial provision for the applicant. The court has wide remedial powers including lump sums, periodical payments and property transfers.
Who can bring an Inheritance Act claim?
Eligible applicants are: the deceased's spouse or civil partner; a former spouse or civil partner who has not remarried or entered a new civil partnership; a cohabitee who lived with the deceased as spouse or civil partner for at least two years immediately before death; a child of the deceased, including adult children; any person treated by the deceased as a child of the family in relation to any marriage or civil partnership; and any person who immediately before the death of the deceased was being maintained wholly or partly by the deceased.
How successful are Inheritance Act claims?
Claims by surviving spouses and civil partners have a very high success rate because the statutory standard for them is not limited to maintenance but extends to a fair share of the estate, comparable to what they might have received on divorce. Claims by cohabitees and adult children are more variable and turn heavily on the applicant's financial resources and needs, the size of the estate and any competing claims. Well-founded claims settle in the great majority of cases before trial.
What is the deadline for an Inheritance Act claim?
The deadline is strict: six months from the grant of probate or letters of administration. The court can extend time, but only with permission, and permission is not routinely granted. If you think you may have a claim, get counsel involved before the six-month deadline expires. It is often possible to protect the position with a standstill agreement, a protective letter of claim or a protective issue.
How much can I claim under the Inheritance Act?
The court has wide powers: lump sums, periodical payments, transfers of property (including the deceased's home), settlement of property, variation of any ante-nuptial or post-nuptial settlement and, in some cases, orders unwinding lifetime gifts made to defeat the claim. The size of any award depends on the applicant's needs, the estate's size, competing claims and, for spouses, the divorce yardstick.
Can I bring a claim without a solicitor?
The Act allows a claim to be brought without a solicitor, and Public Access counsel can advise, draft the letter of claim, prepare witness statements and represent you at a hearing. For a straightforward claim by an adult child of moderate value, this is often the most cost-effective route. For a large or complex claim, particularly one involving trust structures or contested capacity, a solicitor is usually needed to manage the disclosure and correspondence.