Partner conned out of house?

[Natalie22]

My partner and his mother were executors and trustees of his late grandparents estate and assets. His mother all along made out my partner was only executor and she was solely left the property. We only found out he was a trustee when we purchased the will online and saw probate has been granted to them both as the house was left in trust.

Prior to this my partner has his suspicions as when his mother and her partner wanted to tell the house they claimed it was a mistake of the solicitors/ estate agents that he was wrongly listed as an owner. My partner had pages and pages of things to sign before they could sell and was too scared to question it. His mother was “offended” the first time he confronted her and she claimed she was left the freehold.

I know my partner understandably didn’t want to upset her but there has been so much evidence that they both owned the estate. They have now sold and moved away and I am wanted some advice for my partner. As he willingly signed everything over we are worried there’s nothing he can do.

[des8]

sad when trust between family breaks down.

If your partner was executor, why did he have to buy a copy of the will after probate?
As executor (unless with power reserved) he is liable for settlement of the estate and should have been fully cognisant of all that was happening.

What was the exact wording of the will regarding 1) the disposal of the house & 2) the setting up of the trust?

Are there any witnesses to his mother's possible use of undue influence to persuading him to sign those documents?
Any idea what those documents were?

[Natalie22]

Regarding the will, my partner saw it years ago and was unaware what it meant to be as a trustee/ executor (he was only 19/20 at the time) his mother kept hold the will and only passed on information regarding what was left to him and his siblings. Nothing of which was the property, she claimed she was solely left to her. We purchased online as pure curiosity. We both are very new to inheritance/ wills

On the will it states that she appointed her husband sole trustee/ executor of her will and “if survives she gives her estate to her husband absolutely” however he passed away before her and therefore it is left to the trustees. The probate document which we got with the will lists the house and it was granted to my partner and his mother.

I believe the will was changed when his was diagnosed with dementia which she slowly deteriorated until she was bed bound and unable to have the capacity for any decision making. When the grandfather passed my partners mum moved into the property with her husband.

my partners stepdad was very much involved in the persuasion of getting him to sign documents. They would always brush it off as a job for him as executor, would roll their eyes and say how ridiculous they thought it was that he needed to sign so much. My suspicions grew and grew. Sadly I’m unsure what he was signing but I know he had to deal with solicitors and estate agents and was even mentioned as an owner, which is mum denied and said they had make a mistake

[des8]

On the form applying for grant of probate was your partner listed as an applicant or as an executor not applying?
On the grant of probate is your partner named as an executor? (Just seen he was as post !)

It might help to understand the position if you could post up exactly what is written in the will regarding the house.

[Natalie22]

I can see anything on the probate document about my partner listed/ an executor not applying. Only that the estate was granted to the following executors (his mum and himself)

the will is a tricky one. Apart from listing her husband as taking over the property if she passes first there is nothing on there about house. Only that all if he passes she then passes responsibility onto the trustees

[des8]

So if the house is not mentioned as a specific gift to a particular legatee it should be accounted as passing into the residuary estate.
It should then be passed to those who benefit as residuary beneficiaries.
If there are no specific residuary beneficiaries named, it is possible that your partner's mother (as daughter of the testatrix)
would benefit along with her other siblings, if any.

On the other hand you seem to suggest the distribution of the estate has been left entirely to the discretion of the trustees.
If that is the case your partner may have unwittingly agreed to a distribution which he now regrets, and that will be difficult to undo

If you have concerns it might be worth having a single fixed fee consultation with a solicitor to see what options are available

[JJW]

DES8

What are trustees?

[MIKE770]

DES8

What are trustees?

A trustee is a person who takes responsibility for managing money or assets that have been set aside in a trust for the benefit of someone else. As a trustee, you must use the money or assets in the trust only for the beneficiary's benefit.