Grandchild Living with Grandma

[flawless101]

Hi,
Please can someone be kind enough to give me some advice on behalf of a friend?

My friend has a son who has lived with his grandma due to family problems.
He works but was totally dependent upon his grandma for accommodation and food.

The grandma has now passed away.

Does he have any rights under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975?
As the benefactors are looking to make him homeless.

Thanking you for your replies.

[des8]

Did grandmother leave a will?
If not the estate will be dealt with according to the intestacy laws.
Have the executor(s) (if there was a will) applied for a grant of probate?
If no will who has (is going to) applied for a grant of letters of administration.

From the very brief details you have supplied it is not possible to say whether or not a claim under the Inheritance Act would or would not be likely successful.

Many claims under the Act are settled prior to court action, because of the possible cost to the estate.

I would suggest the grandson obtains advice from a solicitor specialising in contentious litigation.
A single fixed fee consultation to see what options he has, and if funding is a problem they might have schemes there to help.

[flawless101]

Did grandmother leave a will?
If not the estate will be dealt with according to the intestacy laws.
Have the executor(s) (if there was a will) applied for a grant of probate?
If no will who has (is going to) applied for a grant of letters of administration.

From the very brief details you have supplied it is not possible to say whether or not a claim under the Inheritance Act would or would not be likely successful.

Many claims under the Act are settled prior to court action, because of the possible cost to the estate.

I would suggest the grandson obtains advice from a solicitor specialising in contentious litigation.
A single fixed fee consultation to see what options he has, and if funding is a problem they might have schemes there to help.

Thank you for your reply.
A grant of probate has not yet been applied for - the death only occurred a couple of months ago.
The lady in question left a will leaving everything to her children, but the will was made over 10 years ago - before her grandson started to live with her.
The grandson was her favourite and she loved having him around and she was happy as Larry the day he moved in.
Sad thing is, she never got around to changing her will.

Attempting to make a claim under the 1975 Inheritance act may cheese other benefactors off - but in my opinion - I think the grandson should at least get advice.

[des8]

No need to worry about being made homeless in the short time.

Until the executors obtain a grant of probate they do not have authority to evict him.
If they then want him out there are procedures to be followed, and this should give him another 6 months or so before any court order becomes enforceable.

As he has been supported by his grandmother he probably has a good claim under the Inheritance Act, and I wouldn't worry about upsetting any beneficiaries.
If they had any decency they would be prepared to vary the will to take into account the deceased's unexpressed wishes.

He really needs to obtain professional advice, at least initially, and not leave it too long as there is a strict time limit (6 months) in which to bring a claim