Oh fuck what is going to happen?

[notahappybunny7]

My mum has passed away. She has left everything in her will to me(house paid(220k and about 50k in savings)
no other siblings off my mother but my dad has 4 more(no relationship with them)
they're married have been for 40+ years but he’s a twat who’s never worked properly, my mum has grafted her arse off to pay mortgage and ct, he has paid utilities and food, well the basics my mum alway bought her lunches and any luxuries. No joint accounts ever.
I’m not money grabbing it my mum wanted this for me and my daughter, to better our lives, he is saying he’s not moving and will contest the will. What will happen?

In England, if a house is owned solely by one person in a marriage, then that house can be gifted to anyone in that person’s will. Their child, the Vicar or even the cat’s home.
Splitting assets as a result of divorce is totally different to the laws around wills.
The deceased’s spouse can contest the will on the grounds that he has lived there for 40 years and will be homeless. It’s highly likely the courts will award him a beneficial interest in the house until he dies - in fact I wouldn’t be surprised if the will doesn’t already say this but the OP hasn’t fully understood the implications. She needs legal advice, and to stop trying to make a 77 yr old blind man homeless.

Definitely. So many on this thread just don’t have a scooby! Hopefully OP will be in touch with a solicitor for proper advice soon.

I'm sorry for your loss and the difficult situation you find yourself in. I worked in trusts and estates for many years and it can be very difficult to take the emotion out of inheritance but sometimes it is necessary as the law looks only at the letter of the legislation and not the emotional issues around it.

Whatever his nature the facts appear to be that your father is a 77 year old man who is virtually blind and married to your mother for 40 years. For much of that time he had virtually no income of his own beyond benefits and was therefore financially reliant on her. At the time of her death he was still living in the house she owned and was therefore financially dependent on her to put the roof over his head and possibly more besides. Sadly for you he has one of the clearest cases of long term financial dependence I've come across from a factual point of view and if the case got to court (which would almost certainly wipe out all the cash in the estate in legal fees) I cannot see a judge not making an order to at the very least require that the estate houses him (and the best you could hope for is that any such order makes the provision for his lifetime only but it could be that the court orders a lump sum for housing provision which would probably wipe out the rest of the estate). This is the reality as cold hard fact.

It really is in your best interests to come to an agreement with him that gives him a right to live in the house until he dies (a life interest) ideally with the ability to either sell the house and buy a suitable sheltered appartment or to invest the proceeds of a sale and use the income to rent one. The cheapest way of doing this would be to instruct a lawyer to draw up a trust deed as a Deed of Variation to the will. It will cost a few thousand in fees but would be worth it to avoid frittering away most of the estate in litigation costs and still end up with nothing at the end of the day as a court ordered that your father be awarded the house. You need to consult a lawyer who is experienced in these issues and the best way to find one near you is to look for one who is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) who have a "find a member" on their website. https://www.step.org/about-step/public

I think a lot on here are assuming the rules on divorce apply on death too, which is not true.

The OPs mum owned a property in her sole name and chose to leave it to her daughter in her Will, that’s totally allowed. If dad doesn’t like it, he can make a claim under the Inheritance act. But as OPs mum had a Will in place there is absolutely no way it would pass to him automatically nor does he have a right to continue living there as it stands - doesn’t matter how long he’s lived there or how much he has paid!

I have not RTFT but this is why competent, educated, motivated women should NOT get married. MN consistently tells women to get married to protect themselves financially but this thread is evidence of why you should think very carefully about that legal document you're signing.

I think this poster is right. He will have strong grounds to contest it. Im sorry to say x

Take v many deep breathes or hit several pillows to deal with your emotional response. Then take your rational self, the will and any relevant documents re utilities or what your mother paid for to talk to a couple of solicitors for initial advice. Whatever you do, don’t inform your father of any thoughts or plans. Once you know where you stand legally then you or a solicitor can inform him via letter. In all events, it will take about six months to deal with legal side at v least. If he could only manage with your mother’s help then he will need his care sorted/funded out of his own assets/income so housing will be someone else’s problem not yours.

It does matter, you can't write dependants out of your will.

It is. Take it from someone it happened to. He got half of my inheritance but unbelievably didnt have to contribute to half the debt left. This was divorce but yes the other posters are right. Inheritance becomes both partners assests in a marriage. He will also have a legal right to be housed.

Mojo is 100% right.

if the OP is also executor., as well as beneficiary, she has 2 hats.

One is to act correctly as executor and follow the rules. This would include NOT transferring property to herself, as beneficiary, when there is clearly a reasonabe claim to the assets of the estate, which has a good chance of succeeding. Therefore the asset will have to be held by the estate until that can be resolved.

so yes, one can apply for probate with a value of mum's assets. But not distribute until the matter is resolved. all needs careful handling to avoid being accused of mismanaging the estate.

Wasn’t that pretty standard for those times?

I know plenty of people that happened too in that era.

If you are named as sole executor, can you hire a professional to carry out your responsibilities on your behalf? I imagine it can sometimes be beneficial to establish distance and prove impeccability.

Tbh, even if they hadn't been married, evicting an elderly disabled person with no income or assets from their home when they'd been financially dependant on the deceased owner for forty years still wouldn't be a trivial undertaking. You could do it eventually, but it would take serious time and money.

However if the OP's DM hadn't been married then yes, she'd have found it much easier (financially) to kick him out in her lifetime.

Has op actually been named as executor?

No idea, I am following @burnoutbabe 's IF both executor and beneficiary train of thought.

It will take a lot of effort for a 77 year old man who is ill and blind to take this to court. He will need to find a lawyer willing to represent him and that will cost a lot of money and take a long time .

I wonder if any of his 4 other children will come to his rescue?

So sorry for your loss OP. I had a very similar situation when my grandmother died, and it was the case that my grandfather was able to challenge the will. This is because if your spouse is financially dependant on you when you die, and you do not provide sufficiently for them in your will, then they have grounds to contest the will.

It does feel a bit of a shame but unfortunately that is how it works as we were told by multiple solicitors (we really hoped there would be another way too)!

I imagine when op tries to evict him, social services will signpost him to legal aid.

It would certainly seem ill advised for her to take on the role, even if she is named 😬

CAN I CUT MY SPOUSE OUT OF MY WILL?27th July 2022

When you make your Will, you are entitled to leave your estate to your choice of beneficiary. While this means that you can choose to cut your spouse out of your Will, there is a chance that they may still be able to make a claim.
In England and Wales, everyone aged 18 or over who has sufficient mental capacity can make a Will leaving their wealth and possessions to whoever they want. This is known as testamentary freedom.

The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (the Act) allows certain individuals to claim against the estate of someone where they did not receive reasonable financial provision, but had the expectation of being supported.

A spouse can bring a claim under the Act if they can demonstrate that the lack of support was not reasonable. If asked to intervene, the court will look at the standard and style of living they had while the deceased was alive and their reasonable expectations as well as what an individual might have expected to receive from a divorce. The level of support awarded could therefore be higher than simply enough to cover day to day maintenance.

Individuals who can claim under the Act include a spouse, civil partner, former spouse, former civil partner (neither of these persons should have remarried), someone who had been living with the deceased as if they were a spouse or civil partner for two years before their death, a child of the deceased, someone who was treated by the deceased as their child and anyone else who was being maintained by the deceased at the time of their death. This could be by way of maintenance payments, provision of housing or the giving of substantial gifts.

Planning for the future
If you do want to leave your spouse out of your Will for some reason, perhaps because you are both well off and have agreed not to leave any money to each other or because you want to ensure that your children are provided for in the future, you are advised to speak to a Wills expert.

There are steps that can be taken to reduce the risk of your estate being left where you would not want. For example, if you leave your spouse a life interest in a property that you share, then when they no longer need to live there, your share can pass in accordance with the terms of your Will, which could be to your children.

One phone call to the right service and, very quickly, he could be connected with legal aid and aged and disability advocacy services. The ball would be rolling and it wouldn't have cost him a cent or much energy at that point.

He won’t. His only right is to make claim for a provision under the inheritance act. He has no right on divorce or matrimonial housing rights in this scenario as his wife is passed.

I want this thread deleted, I’ve reported it to Mumsnet, do I need to do anything else?

This is an easy will to challenge. OP's mother has clearly not made adequate financial provision for her husband in her will. He therefore has a claim under the Inheritance Act. Leaving him a token amount or stating that he is specifically excluded would make no difference. He is entitled to get as much from the estate as he would have received had they divorced.