What is an Inheritance Act claim?
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 provides a means by which a person can challenge the reasonableness of the terms of the will of the deceased or the effect of the intestacy rules.
For more information on the eligibility of those who can make an Inheritance Act claim, please read our article.
Kaur v Singh: The Facts
A recent example of a successful spousal Inheritance Act claim is that of Kaur v Singh.
In this case, Mr Singh (“the Deceased”) and Mrs Kaur (“the Claimant”) married in 1955 and had seven children together. The Deceased passed away in 2021, predeceased by one of his children and therefore leaving six children and his wife.
During their lengthy marriage of 66 years, the Deceased took a traditional family role as the family's breadwinner and took control of the family finances. The Deceased upheld very conventional views as to the family dynamic and although he and the Claimant shared a successful clothing business, the Claimant did not financially benefit from this and instead, was fully financially dependent on the Deceased.
Despite pre-deceasing his wife and six children (two of which were male and four of which were female), the Deceased’s will adopted his cultural norms and sought to benefit only his male children. As a result, the Claimant issued a claim for ‘reasonable financial provision’ from the Deceased’s £1.2m estate under the Inheritance Act.
Kaur v Singh: The Law
The Inheritance Act allows for a widow to bring a claim against their spouse’s estate for such financial provision as would be reasonable in all the circumstances, whether or not that provision is required for their maintenance.
In applying this, the court must have regard to the provision which the spousal applicant might reasonably have received if, on the day of the deceased’s death, they had terminated the marriage by divorce instead. This is known as the ‘divorce cross-check’.
Kaur v Singh: The Outcome
The Claimant issued an Inheritance Act claim against the Deceased’s estate on the basis that during their 66 years of marriage, she was financially dependent on him.
Additionally, the Deceased was considered a fairly wealthy man with an estate estimated to be worth £1.2m in contrast with the Claimant, who had only a modest annual income of £12,000. An important factor considered by the court was that the Deceased’s wealth was accumulated during his marriage with the Claimant, something that was only possible as a result of the important role she played in the family dynamic regardless of the fact that she did not produce a financial income for the family.
After consideration of her circumstances, the Court awarded the Claimant half of the deceased’s estate as a ‘reasonable financial provision’ for her. The Court based this decision on the factors of the ‘divorce cross check’ and held that “It is hard to see how any other conclusion can be reached. After a marriage of 66 years, to which she made a full and equal contribution, and during which all the assets accrued, she is left with next to nothing. The divorce cross check points unerringly towards an equal division of assets”.
Conclusion
This case is a modern example of the Court’s view on spousal Inheritance Act claims and the high standard that is set when considering what financial provision is “reasonable”. In this case, modern values and ethics prevailed over the deceased’s more traditional views and the Court awarded the claimant a share of half of the deceased’s high value estate.
How Tozers can help
If you think you might have an Inheritance Act claim, please give us a call to discuss ways in which we can help you.
