Share of Estate if I'm 'not really a Smith child' ??

[medianewbie]

I was born in 1968 in a small English village. My parents were Mr & Mrs Smith. I had an older brother John Smith. I was sent to school as Sally Smith (names changed). Aged 16 my Mother claimed I was the result of an affair she'd had with Mr Brown who'd died when I was an infant. I'd been taken twice as a child to see 2 old ladies she now claimed were my relatives.
I applied for my Birth Cert which showed Mr Brown had signed as my Father. She had signed it as Mrs Brown, when she was in fact Mrs Smith.
I changed my name to Brown-Smith so I could get a passport & didn't upset anyone (it did upset everyone)

My Mother has now died. Intestate. She told me before she died that she wanted all 4 of her Grandchildren to be treated equally. There is no estate except for the House which Dad / Mr Smith still lives in. He & my Brother say it is a Smith House only. My children are being posted the 'pocket money' cheques my mother saved for them. (about £300 each?) The House, which Dad needs to live in, & which may well be needed for care fees in due course anyway, is worth around £400k. I was given some pics of 'my real dad's grave' & £700 in £10 notes in a carrier bag.

I appreciate it seems distasteful to ask whilst Dad's still here & living there, but do my kids have any claim on the estate the way my Mum had said, or is it hopeless because of the Birth Cert names (I was never adopted by Mr Smith, but I was legally Sally Smith till age 16). Also, my Brother is sueing the NHS re Mums death (possibly correctly). Presumably if he receives £ from this, Mr Smith / brother will inherit that too?
Since she died, I've been cut out of ALL arrangements. I mind, but i mind more for my kids - they are disabled, I'm now a single parent & I worry for them, as did my Mum (not enough to make a will tho).

Does anybody have any thoughts?

Sadly it sounds like you won't have a claim. You are not a child of Mr Smith, so have no rights to inherit from him.

Is this all financially driven? It sounds a shit show! Would Mr Smith do a dna test to see if you were his?

Actually what 'claim' to the estate do you expect given Mr Smith still lives there!!

She’s still your mother and your brother is being an arse. Find a lawyer

No but under intestacy rules you should inherit from your mother

I'm fairly sure that without a will, everything that was your mum's (including her share of the property) passes directly to her next of kin (Mr Smith). If he is not your father, you have no claim on it unless he writes a will to include you / your children. If there is even the smallest chance that Mr Smith could be your father, it may be worth a DNA test but ultimately, any will he has would trump the result from that. If he doesn't have a will and it turns out that he is your father, then you would have a claim.

You would be entitled to the share of your mum's estate -- she was still your parent.

You would not be entitled to Mr. Smith's estate -- you were never legally Sally Smith, even though you used that name.

So Mr Smith will have inherited the house from his wife (were they married) on her death. He is next of kin as her husband. So her wishes are not counted. He can then choose to leave his estate when he dies to who he wishes. If he dies intestate then if you’re not related to him you get nothing.

if they were married mr smith inherits the first 270k of the estate, but remember I think only half the house counts as hers…..so that’s 200k. Did she have over 70k in savings?

Assuming this is in England and there is no will, the first £270k of the estate goes to the surviving partner and the rest is divided equally among the children.

If the home was jointly owned, then only part of the equity in the home is a part of the estate.

I'm fairly sure that without a will, everything that was your mum's (including her share of the property) passes directly to her next of kin (Mr Smith).

Not necessarily. It depends on variables such as which part of the UK the op lives in (if she is in the UK) and how much the estate is worth. See here: www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will

You posted this before, didn't you? Very recently. Unless something has changed, you'll get the same advice this time.

I’ve screenshotted a page quickly googled from Gov.uk.

The sums involved in your particular case may mean that there won’t be anything for you to inherit from your mum, but this may be a useful lesson for the posters who think that the next of kin inherits everything if you die intestate!

Find a lawyer.

My Mum was married to Mr Smith yes.
There is no estate except the House (worth around £400k?)
Mr Smith wouldn't take a DNA test (& he's 88 so I wouldn't ask him). But, my Mother told lots of stories all her life so, really, who knows?
My brother is being vile so, yes, its about money, but its also about being SO excluded, both myself & my children.

I would start with a DNA test to establish who your father is. Does Mr Smith claim you couldn’t be his child?

I live in Scotland but I was born, & the family live, in Surrey.

If your brother and Mr Smith won’t take a DNA test, you could possibly still establish Smith or Brown by taking an Ancestry DNA test.

Sorry for the loss of your Mum.

It is a great shame that your Mum did not leave a will.

See this link here: www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will

If you are in England and Wales it looks as if her half of the house (as it is below £270k) will go to Mr Smith if they were married.

And from that point it is all down to his will.

He and your brother are being really horrible. You are certainly the daughter of your Mum and he should honour that in his will. But in the end by not leaving a will your Mum left everything to him. If you are in England / Wales.

What a horrible situation for you OP. 🙁

If the house was jointly owned, then the £200k or so is under the £270k threshold for anyone other than your mother's husband to inherit -- so neither you nor any siblings would have a claim to your mother's estate.

Once Mr. Smith has inherited, it is a part of his estate and you only have claim to that under a will, or, if intestate, through biology.

Since your mum and Mr Smith live/d in England, the English inheritance law will prevail.

Thank you @sausage&cash for your kind words.
Yes, Dad is old & muddled but my brother is being really vile. I think it's particularly awful that he's chasing compensation from the NHS ( possibly correctly) but he failed to care for her at the end himself (he lives 8m away, I am 400m away & he 'didn't know she was ill' until I told him...) It's all about £ for him. He was already given a house when Mr Smiths mother died which he'll leave to 1 of his children. He will take this house in time for the other one. Dad could make a will but he won't. My brother has even taken Mum's ashes already. Horrible person.

Were, your Mum and Mr Smith joint tenants or tenants in common for the house? It makes a difference as if the former, he inherits the whole thing and can do with it as he wishes in terms of his will.

I'm sorry you're in this position OP, it is not good and not of your making, but if your mother didn't protect your interests you can't expect Mr Smith to. I speak as someone who has at least 2 putative birth fathers, one very well off, but I will inherit nothing from him and if that is the case with you, it is best to make peace with it.

@CPL593H
I don't know, & I don't know how I'd find out?
I understand your point. But my Mother told me on her death-bed 'just ask your Brother if you need anything, he will see you right ..'. I said I don't think he will actually Mum, anyway its not me I'm worried about, it's my kids.
She said don't worry one day Dad won't need the house & your brother will then divide it between the 4 grandkids.
Will he heck ...

Is it possible to do a dna test on your dad without his knowledge or is that just a 'in the movies' thing