Disinheriting a Dependent In Your Will

Often a testator will decide not to include certain family members in their Will. Most people will usually favour certain family members especially their immediate family, the law encourages this so that you avoid any disputes. Although it must be remembered that you are allowed to give all your assets to anyone you choose, family or not, certain people who are closely related to you by blood and whom you have supported financially, are able to, regardless of what you have stated in your Will, make an application to the court for a share in your estate over other beneficiaries that have been formally named in your Will.

If, for whatever reason you decide that your spouse or civil partner, children or anyone else that are financially dependent on you, should inherit only a little or nothing from youl after your death, any one of them could apply to the courts for a reasonable provision to be made for them out of what you have left in your Will to your other family members. These same provisions would apply if the deceased did not leave a valid Will, when this is the case the intestacy rules would apply.

There are several ways in which such people that can contest a Will, can be properly excluded from benefiting from your estate. For example, because a spouse or civil partner has already been given a house and a large sum of money during your lifetime or is financially wholly independent, they can be then properly excluded from benefiting from you estate.

An easy way to prevent people from making any successful claims against your estate and your Will, you should make sure that the wording is clear and well thought through. Consulting a professional Will writer or specialised solicitor is probably the best course of action to be completely safe in the drafting of your Will. Nevertheless, you can consider making a bequest to people who you think might make a claim contesting the Will, as they might be then less likely to claim if they have been given something rather than nothing at all.

I am a legal writer covering advice on topics of law, for further text and similar works visit Wills or contact a solicitor today.

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