Wills & Probate specialist, Mark Cannon, reports on whether you can do what you want with your own assets.
It has long been a feature of English and Welsh wills that if you want to give all your wealth to the cats’ home, then you can do it.
However, a recent case caused a bit of a stir. A mother left her whole estate (£500,000) to three charities. This upset her daughter who was on benefits. There had been a big fall-out between the two, and the mother clearly wanted to exclude her daughter.
The daughter asked the courts to change the will so that she could get something. This was despite the mother’s decision to leave it all to charity. The judge agreed with the daughter and he ordered that some of the mother’s wealth be given to the daughter so that she could buy her own house.
So, the question is ..can you do what you want with your own assets?
Yes, you can, but you should be aware that there have always been certain types of people who can make a claim against your estate if they feel they have been left out. So, if you leave nothing to your infant children, they can apply to have some money to keep them alive. Husbands and wives can make a claim, but it has been very difficult for adults to prove that they needed some of that wealth.
The new case makes it clear that if a child claims from a parent’s estate, then all the circumstances will be looked at; the child’s poverty; the size of the parent’s wealth; and , in this case, just how close the mother was to the three charities (not very, as it turned out.)
If you want to exclude a child, be careful how you write your will.
If you’ve been excluded by your parent, you may still be able to claim some money.
To discuss any aspects of wills or probate please contact Mark Cannon on Tel: 0800 169 1325.