Delicate family situation - any advice please

[n20998]

Hi, my father recently passed away. We're waiting for a post mortem and nothing has happened yet regarding funeral etc.. I'm just trying to get my position clear in my head, as I've no idea what will happen. I don't really know what to say, so below is some information

1. My father lived with my grandmother his whole life. They lived in a property which I believe was bought in the 70s/80s outright, so don't think he contributed to a mortgage, but obviously did to the upkeep of the house. Grandmother is now in the house alone.
2. Father was never married to my mother. He's not on my birth certificate. However, when I was a teenager he got a Parental Responsibility Order (think that's the term...) which was granted and said he was the father. I have this document. I'm his only child.
3. My relationship with his side of the family has been bad. This goes back to my childhood with issues with my mother. It continued with issues with me as an adult. My relationship with my father improved markedly in the past year or so.
4. My father has a brother who is a solicitor and I believe has been involved in his affairs.
5. My father refused to talk about death or what might happen. It was a real block and he just wouldn't have any of it, especially as he's been seriously ill at points over the last 15 years. I'm sure he wouldn't have made a will, unless he was forced or influenced by his mother or brother.
6. He had no other property. He may or may not have had savings. He did get a pension lump sum but not sure what happened with that. He had been receiving his work pension for a couple of years but had not yet reached state pension age.
7. I know nothing about his banking arrangements or where he would have accounts. I've got a strange feeling he may have ended up with a joint account with his mother but that's just something that's entered my head recently.

I think that's all the important information. Like I said, I just don't know where to begin. I've started reading up about intestry. I just feel like I'm going to be pushed out, of potentially both the funeral arrangements and what happens with his (small) estate. My worry is that the brother will do something so everything goes to his mother...or that he was influenced into creating a will to that effect. I know nothing about this stuff. Any thoughts or advice much appreciated.

[Peridot]

Hi N20998,

I'm sorry to hear your worries. It is good your relationship with your father improved in the last year or so and must now be upsetting for you that you may not get the chance to be involved with his funeral arrangements. You mention parental responsibility is his name also on your birth certificate?

It must be hard for you. It is difficult to know the best thing to start with here. If your father made a Will and assuming that you are not named in the Will then there is very little that you can do I'm afraid. If you are an independant adult that has not been supported by your father financially you would be highly unlikely to succeed in any potential claim against his estate.

As far as any intestacy is concerned then as your father's child yes you would potentially be entitled to the estate. However if he had joint accopunts these would not form part iof the estate to be distributed. Any funds held in joint accounts would pass to the surviving owner.

It may be an idea to contact the family and just indicate that you would like to know when the funeral is. I wouldn't discuss your concerns about money and wills at this point bearing in mind your poor relationship with the family in any event.

If there is a Will then once a Grant of Probate is obtained they you can obtain a copy if you wish, although if you are a beneficiary then you shoudl be contacted by the executors.

If this is an intestacy situation then it may be helpful to have a look at this link which explains how the estate is divided in these circumstances:- https://www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will
If your father's brother is a solicitor he will know the serious ramifications of not following the intestacy rules. I think there needs to be an element of wait and see I'm afraid.

I think you need to take a breath, contact the family to confirm you would like to have details of the funeral date and if needs be say you don't want to cause any upset but wish to say goodbye to your father.

See how things go and then let us know we may have some more pointers once you have some further information. I wouldn't launch in about your father's estate I anticipate it will just fuel an already difficult situation with the family at this stage.

[n20998]

Hi Peridot

Thank you so much for the detailed reply.

To be clear, he was not listed on my birth certificate, the father box was left blank. However, I do have a parental responsibility order where he is listed as my father (and, again to be clear, he is my biological father).

I am so far being included in the funeral arrangements i.e. I’ve been told it’s being arranged and when it is likely to be.

As you say, at this stage I’m just guessing - I feel like I’m just trying to be prepared. I think I’ve got a couple of questions...

1) How would I find out who the executor is? Does that information become public?
2) What sort of evidence would someone need to challenge a will based on undue influence or any grounds like that? Again, jus let trying to be prepared.

Thanks again

[n20998]

Apologies for grammar errors phone not cooperating this morning!

[2222]

Wills and executor details can be obtained from the Probate registry once probate has been granted. That usually takes a few months.

if the estate is very small, the executor may not need probate to carry out his duties.

you would need very strong evidence before alleging undue influence. It's recognised as common sense to make a will, and you would have a hard time persuading a court that your father would never have done so without severe pressure. Besides which, it's not the will that you object to, but the possibility that it doesn't name you as principle beneficiary, if I understand you correctly. I can't see how you can do anything until you know what's in it, anyway.

[des8]

You can search on line for probate details: https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

[n20998]

Thanks again for the responses. If probate is not needed, is it possible to find out the executor details? Would I be relying on being told by grandmother or uncle?

[Peridot]

Hi N20998,

I'm afraid you would be relying on the grandmother or uncle letting you know who the executor is, if a Grant is not needed.
It appears at the moment they are at least keeping you in the loop as far as the funeral location and date are concerned. I suspect you need to wait and see. Difficult I know but nothing will even start happening until the funeral has taken place I suspect.

If he owned part of the property or if he had savings at a bank over about £20k (depending on the bank/building society this figure may change) or shares then a Grant would be needed.

Undue influence is one of the most difficult allegations to show. It is the Will that you would be objecting to in these circumstances so you'd be saying that the will was created due to the 'undue' influence of another(s). Of course Wills are made every day that are influenced by various factors but the law won't allow 'undue' influence. The biggest issue in proving undue influence is the fact the main 'witness' is no longer with us so unable to clarify anything to assist the Court in deciding the issue. You would have to prove that the person making the Will had been so influenced they were unable to use their free will as it had been completely repressed. It is necessary to show that on the facts no other hypothesis could explain the Will. As you can imagine this is very difficult to show.

As far as any claim by you as family or dependent, against the estate is concerned. This would also not be straightforward. Firstly there would have to be a Will (as without a Will the rules of intestacy would be followed), next let us assume you are not included in the Will. To be successful in any claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 you would have to show you were in a category of people entitled to bring a claim. As a child you would be. However this does not mean you would be successful in any claim as you would also have to show that you were a dependant. As an independent adult, unless you can show that you were receiving financial support regularly you would be unlikely to be successful in this sort of claim. You would need to obtain some specialist advice should you believe you have a claim under the Act.

I suspect that you need to take that breath again and wait and see.