Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Legal matters

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you have any legal concerns we suggest you consult a solicitor.

Very complex inheritance dispute - Resulting Trust claim

7 replies

ParkingNightmares · 07/09/2026 23:40

I wonder if any legally trained folks can guide please ?

A resulting trust claim is being potentially claimed against my late mum's estate, she died intestate 2.5 yrs ago.

My fellow beneficiary claims he owns a piece of land that was in my late parents names. He claims he loaned the purchase price. To date he has not forwarded any hard evidence of this.

There is a S116 Court appointed Independent Administrator trying to administer the estate but is up against his constant blocks including putting a lodger in the house and refusing access to the valuer and to clear it.

Have now had sight of the original conveyancing file from when the land was bought and it shows the purchase was made by a Ltd company that he was a co director of until he resigned 2 years later.
The company was then run by another family member until it was liquidated due to debts. A professional liquidator was involved.
This land did not appear as an asset on any of the co accounts published on Companies House, liquidator unaware it may have been an asset.

There us a gift of monies document in the file, stating he will seek no beneficial interest in the land and that the land is to go to him and myself upon our parents death.

He claims he has no knowledge of this letter and the signature is forged by my late mum.

Ive spoken to a couple of solicitors and been given conflicting advice that makes little sense.

My understanding is that a resulting trust is primarily based on demonstrating money changed hands via personal funds and Ltd Company funds cannot be claimed as personal money ?

The IA also seems quite confused on next steps.

No official letter before action yet, just an email from his solicitor to the IA.

The due dillingence by the conveyancing solicitor is shocking, so many red flags regarding the source of the funds and the intention of the parties that the IA said the transaction should never have completed due to the concerns over funding.

Any thoughts welcome

OP posts:
greatestofallfine · 08/09/2026 00:39

This reply has been hidden

This reply has been hidden until the MNHQ team can have a look at it.

Somersetbaker · 08/09/2026 07:01

Who owns the land according to the Land Registry and are there any charges or covenants on it. You may have a conveyancing file, but that does not mean a transfer did not take place later, just that you have seen no evidence of it.

ParkingNightmares · 08/09/2026 07:23

Late Parents own the land according to land registry - the dispute is who advanced the funds and it is 100% clear a now liquidated company did but what is not clear is was it a gift or a loan.

No charges registered or later transfers. If he had done that he wouldn't now be trying to claim it. Ive had a property alert on the land since the day mum died.

OP posts:
Somersetbaker · 08/09/2026 08:43

He doesn't own the land, he may have given or lent the funds either personally or through the company so he needs to provide evidence that this was a loan. If it was a repayable loan from the company it should have been declared to the liquidator, who would have called the loan in, or sold it to satisfy any outstanding creditors, any residue then would be divided between the share-holders. This sort of thing will become more common and is a direct result of small companies not needing audit, the only check on these companies is if HMRC suspect a problem, often a director who seems to have a lifestyle or earnings out of proportion to the size of the company.

ParkingNightmares · 08/09/2026 09:09

That's my thinking too, he's made a lot of noise since mum died about this but only last week advanced the allegation of the forged gift document.

The 3 solicitors i've consulted on a half hour free appraisal all seem vague and not really understanding the situation. There are other complications of an enforcement notice on the land from the local authority due to his sons running a business without planning consent for change of use.

They will happily take 20k off me i'm sure but at this stage I don't feel I need to do anything. If he comes up with solid proof of a loan, I am prepared to negotiate. He appears to be wanting to claim from the estate so I feel it is up to the IA to fend this off.

The other part of the estate, the house, is not in dispute but it could not be sold separately due to its location next to the land. Ie, if my brother takes ownership the house will be very difficult to sell separately. I also don't think he has the funds to buy my share.

He did make a ridiculously low ball offer a year in to all this , which I refused, but he didn't increase.

He has probably spent 20k arguing over something that is probably only worth 60k given it has no planning consent and is currently classed as a piece of woodland.

OP posts:
Somersetbaker · 08/09/2026 09:42

The IA needs to grow some and tell your brother to put up or shut up.

ParkingNightmares · 08/09/2026 09:56

Somersetbaker · 08/09/2026 09:42

The IA needs to grow some and tell your brother to put up or shut up.

That's my thinking too, it's not my job to investigate his allegations.

One call to the liquidator will probably clarify (And open another can of worms)
The evidence is that the money came directly from the co bank acc, even the legal fees were paid by them. It didn't go to him as a repayable Director's loan which he then paid from his account.

Thanks Somerset, appreciate your thoughts.

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread