Intestacy Rules And Cohabiting Partners

We acted for a client whose partner died suddenly without having made a Will. As our client and the deceased were not married, the intestacy rules did not recognise our client as a beneficiary. She stood to lose everything, including her home, on top of the grief of losing her partner of nearly 20 years in sudden and tragic circumstances.

The partner had two adult children from his earlier marriage, and they stood to inherit his entire estate. Our client did not have a very good relationship with his children, and she was worried she would be asked to leave the home she had shared with their father.

Jordans Solicitors expert inheritance claims solicitors acted swiftly bringing an inheritance act claim against the estate. We argued the deceased would not have wanted his partner to be left with nothing and had he gotten around to making a Will, he would have left most of his estate, including the home they shared together, to our client. We were able to persuade the children to mediate the dispute and during this process we were able to secure a favourable outcome for our client which included the signing over of the house into her sole name. This gave our client the security and certainty she wanted and hoped for.

This case demonstrated the importance of making a Will to ensure that your wishes are recognised after your death and that your loved ones are taken care of. It also highlighted that the law would step in under certain circumstances to correct unintended hardships and unfairness occurring