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?

You need a law firm with a bereavement, wills and probate dept who have experience.

Legal cases are arduous, and expensive if he’s in ill health it will drain him and he might not have the money anyway.

Get legal advice. You have a will, house was your mums before marriage, and he’s a stepfather so yes you can take it all and kick him out. My cousin did this with my uncle who tried the same shit with my aunt’s estate. I can’t believe some of the posts on here - if you don’t know the law why on earth are you commenting here!

Well legally it's not but emotionally and ethically it is. OP is likely to have a very different relationship with him than if he were her own dad.

Divorce is very different, obvs, but I had to give details of a (very small, just a few grand) pending inheritance from my DM when I got divorced.

They weren't included in the end, because I was unable to access them at the time.

Are you a lawyer? Then you have no more authority than anyone else posting here.

Yes but the law doesn't care about OP's emotional relationship with her stepfather.

Your step father can make a claim that your mother failed to make reasonable financial provision for him. The test under the inheritance Act (Provision for Family and Dependants Act) 1975 takes into account what a spouse would have received in a divorce and that he shouldn’t be left worse off. He doesn’t need to prove that the will was invalid or that he beneficially owned a share of the property (although that could be a route to a claim).

this article explains it well and I’ve also copied and pasted the relevant paragraphs below.
https://www.kingsleynapley.co.uk/insights/blogs/dispute-resolution-law-blog/the-clearest-possible-case-for-an-inheritance-act-claim-by-a-surviving-spouse#:~:text=1975%20Act%20Claims,or%20partly%2C%20by%20the%20deceased.

In these claims, the 1975 Act requires the court to consider two questions:
1. Does the will fail to make reasonable financial provision for the claimant?
2. If so, what should the financial provision be?
In deciding these questions, the court considers a number of factors listed in the 1975 Act as follows:
1. The financial resources and needs of the applicant;
2. The financial resources and needs of any other applicant;
3. The financial resources and needs of the beneficiaries;
4. Any obligations and responsibilities of the deceased towards any applicant and any beneficiary;
5. The size and nature of the estate of the deceased;
6. Any physical or mental disability of any applicant or beneficiary;
7. Any other matter, including conduct, which the court may consider relevant.

For claims by spouses the court will also consider:
1. The age of the applicant and the length of the marriage/civil partnership;
2. The contribution made by the applicant to the welfare of the family of the deceased including any contribution made by looking after the home or caring for the family;
3. The provision the applicant might reasonably have expected to receive if on the day the deceased died the marriage were terminated by divorce rather than death. This is often referred to as the “divorce cross check” and generally a surviving spouse should not be worse off as widow as compared to a divorcee.

No, it's her real dad. He has four other children from one or more other relationships. He may well wish to provide for them as well as for the OP, and they may well also feel they are entitled to a share of his home when he dies. Messy situation. As this thread is in Active, many posters may not have noticed this is in the Legal Matters section. A lot are saying what they think the position should be, not what the law says. It's not good saying 'I think this is what should/will happen ...' in a case like this. OP needs to see a solicitor asap.

No it’s actually my dad

OP's first post states "my dad", and at 00:20 OP writes "Father not stepfather".

Nope. It's her biological dad

Apologies. I'm up at night with my three month old so a bit tired.

The irony of this comment!

Marriage has a huge bearing on assets and finances including upon death, lots don't realise this I think.

Would it be best to just smile and be nice, say to him that you don't want him homeless so he can stay in the house then when he dies, it'll all just come to you anyway, as per the will? As opposed to fighting him for it, where he'll likely win, and he could then pass his share down to his kids?

I'm not a lawyer though, please get legal advice.

Sorry for your loss OP 💐

For your sake I hope I’m wrong but I think you need to consider that in the coming years your father may need residential/nursing home care. I know from personal experience in completing the paperwork for a relative that the financial assessment form is very detailed. Details are asked about finances and property including previously owned property. The form stated there was no time limit on how far back they would search to see if a property had been disposed of by selling or gifting to someone. It stated any such action is considered deprivation of assets and action would be taken to recoup the money as a contribution to care home fees. Although your Mum’s name was on the mortgage it seems unlikely that the property will be disregarded in any financial assessment for your father.

Maybe try reading the thread? He is the father and the house was bought during the 40 year marriage

https://www.rochelegal.co.uk/news/myth-busters-10-i-can-leave-family-members-out-of-my-will-and-theres-nothing-they-can-do-about-it/#:~:text=Unlike%20many%20other%20countries%2C%20we,other%20organisation%20you%20wish%20to.

This link looks helpful. Unfortunately he can contest the will.

I know you said the mortgage was just in your mum's name, but what about the deeds for the house?

My parent has disinherited their child from a previous relationship. Along with their will there is a copy of a letter from the parent explaining why.

OP have you actually seen the will and any related documents since your mum died? I ask because I would think that a solicitor being asked to write up a will which leaves everything to a child and disinherits the spouse would ask questions on why and advise how to do it so it maximises the chances of the will standing up in court.

If the death is very recent and you haven't got the will and any related docs out yet then try to do this asap so you can see if there is anything to help your case.

I hope the will is at the solicitor's office or the OP's house for safe keeping. One of my worries in the OP's situation is that if the relationship was coercive, her father may have put pressure on her mum either to destroy the will or to make a new one in his favour. However, presumably he would have mentioned that by now if either of those things had happened.

When my mum died she left everything to me, she had a joint mortgage with my stepdad. He bought me out of my share of the house in the end, he was not happy about it at all. Not sure if this helps but his being annoyed had no effect on her will being carried out. He receives her pension but that’s all.

You went to the appointment where she disinherited her husband and left everything to you? That’s a slippery slope to be standing on; did the solicitor ask you to step out so he could speak with her alone, and ensure no coercion? Because you being in that appointment gives him a claim.

I'm sorry for your loss, OP, and realise that it must be shocking to hear that what you thought would happen with your mother's house is unlikely to happen. It's the last thing you need when you're grieving.

The link helpfully posted by @ZadocPDederick says quite clearly that

"If the applicant is a surviving spouse or civil partner of the deceased, they can claim at a higher maintenance standard which is whatever is necessary for their maintenance in all of the circumstances. This is significant because with spouses and civil partners, the court can take into account the standard and style of living and reasonable expectations of the applicant, including what they might have expected to get if the relationship had ended with divorce instead of death, and that may well exceed what they need for their day to day maintenance."

As your mother had the higher income, he could clearly show that she was supporting him financially. And had they divorced, he almost certainly would have a decent amount.

I really think you need to see a solicitor, ideally the one who did the will. And I think you should try and get your head round the idea that he will get something, and possibly something quite substantial, and that it will be in your long-term interests to try and negotiate with him rather than to get involved in costly and expensive litigation.

I'm so sorry this has happened, and your anger is perfectly understandable. But it's also not likely to be helpful in sorting out the estate.

My husband pays our mortgage and I pay some utilities, stuff for kids and food bills, does that mean I'm not entitled to anything if he dies? At the end of the day he did contribute to the household by paying utilities and food. He could contest and may well win something.

I think he has a case and will win. They were married for 40yrs and she should have acknowledged him in the will to show that she had considered him. I would offer him something; it may stick in your throat but I would. Your other option is to let him live in the house till he does then it’s yours anyway.