The Rules of Intestacy

Will claim Solicitors, specialist no win no fee will dispute and will contest Solicitors, discuss the rules of intestacy

What are the rules of intestacy and when do they apply?

The rules of intestacy determine who inherits from a deceased persons estate when he/she dies without a Will. Whilst in England and Wales a person can make a Will leaving his/her estate to whomever he/she wants to (and thereby disinherit wives/husbands and blood related children), these near relatives are very much in line to be beneficiaries where there is no Will at all.

For some more information about this in general, have a look at our earlier blog

Intestacy – can I challenge the rules? – Will Claim Solicitors

or read on!

So who inherits when there is no Will?

Married or in a civil partnership

There is some logic to this as one would expect. If the deceased was married or in a civil partnership and he/she did not have children, the spouse or civil partner will inherit the entirety of the estate. If the deceased did have children, then the spouse or civil partner receives all of the personal possessions, the first £270,000 of the remainder of the estate and 50% of the balance. The remaining 50% passes to the children.

Not married or in a civil partnership

If the deceased had children, then they inherit it all.

If the deceased did not have children but had living parents, then they inherit everything between them. Where there are no surviving parents, the estate is split between surviving
siblings.

There is a very good government website which describes exactly who will inherit in particular circumstances at:

Intestacy – who inherits if someone dies without a will? – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

So who administers the estate where there is no Will?

As with any estate of a reasonable size, it is only possible to administer the estate once the Probate Registry have provided an authorisation “certificate”. When there is a Will this is called the “Grant of Probate”. The Executor appointed under the Will is tasked with completing the estate administration in accordance with the terms of the Will.

Where there is no Will, the “certificate” to administer the estate is called the “Letter of Administration”. As there is no Will, the identity of the person who can administer the estate is pretty much the beneficiary or beneficiaries – in other words the same order of priority applies to the potential Administrators as it does to the beneficiaries where there is no Will.

Can a disappointed beneficiary still claim where there is no Will?

The short answer is yes. It is possible, for example, for a disappointed beneficiary to bring a claim for financial provision under section 2 of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. For further information see the statute and our earlier blog:

Update on Adult and Minor Children Claims Under the 1975 Act (Part 1 of 2) – Will Claim Solicitors
Update on Adult and Minor Children Claims Under the 1975 Act (Part 2 of 2) – Will Claim Solicitors

If you consider any of these facts and matters are of interest, are likely to apply to you, or you would like to ask us for more information about our no win no fee arrangement, or you simply want us to assess your claim, then please do not hesitate to contact us for a confidential no strings chat and/or visit us at www.willclaim.com.

We provide details about our no win no fee arrangements at https://www.willclaim.com/nowin-no-fee/.