Protecting inheritance

[stardustbiscuits]

Protecting inheritance …
this question is asked in the context of my marriage, with two young children, where my husband has left twice in the last two years for periods of about 6 months. He earns more, savings are in his name only, and I don’t in general trust his financial decision making.
given the above my uncle (unmarried/ no kids) and mother both from whom I stand to inherit, don’t want to give any money to us in the shorter term that he could ‘get his hands on’ and are clearly worried about what will happen to inheritance when they pass.
My question is, can I protect against this? My thoughts are if I invested in property in my name only if I inherited, then used the income to fund eg holidays/ a pension/ school fees, and kept it separate from the family money, would it be protected if we separate again and for good? Obviously it gives me the control I need in the shorter term as well.
obviously there is a whole other discussion topic to be had on why he is back here at all and why I allow it etc etc and mumsnetters would have a field day with that one, but that would be too long a post! The question here is purely a financial one :)

Leave him and its not a problem. You know you want to.

No, it would be marital assets. You're better off divorcing now before inheritance becomes an issue (divorce seems inevitable based upon what you've said)

Divorce him
Open trust fund or savings account for your dc that can have money paid in
Open your own bank account
Mum and uncle make wills
If mum and uncle want to give you money in the shorter term can they buy gifts, pay for things instead

It will all be a marital asset. Just get divorced. If you relatives die tomorrow he'll get half of everything.

They can put it into a trust, an experienced accountant can advise on the technicalities. But like others - you know the actual answer! Leave him, we'll start the process and plan carefully

Honestly divorce him and get on with
your life.

if he is truly your one true bliss you can remarry in 5/10 years…. A la Elizabeth Taylor

Definitely leave him. He's been gone half the time in the last 2 years. He's a deadbeat. Protect your money.

Just to clarify, I don’t consider him a deadbeat and there have been marital issues. But on the question of finances, I am had read elsewhere that if gifts are given to one person and are then not mingled with the family money then they may well be treated separately - if there are sufficient funds available to keep both parties housed,
meet children’s needs etc. so I think that’s what I’m getting at.

https://www.divorce.co.uk/your-finances/inheritance

My thoughts are if I invested in property in my name only if I inherited, then used the income to fund eg holidays/ a pension/ school fees, and kept it separate from the family money, would it be protected if we separate again and for good?

I don't think this works - what you use the money for is not relevant in a divorce, the issue is that the asset is in your name, so it goes into the pot.

What I suspect you need is a trust - probably with the children as beneficiaries and you as trustee. But for that you need an expert both to write it and to tell you how to operate it.
I suggest you repost this on legal and see if you can find @marlowwills

I would suggest that your uncle and mother give any money directly to your children rather than yourself. This will mean that any money they give in the short term or an inheritance does not become a matrimonial asset as it never belongs to you, but rather to your children.

Something to consider in the short term is either a Junior ISA or bare trust. You would open a separate Junior ISA in the name of each of your children and anyone (including your uncle and mother) can put in up to £9,000 a year into each Junior ISA.

The good/bad thing about a Junior ISA is that the money cannot be taken out until the child turns 18 and is an adult (there is an exception if they are terminally ill or die before 18).

The bad part is that any money in there you cannot touch at all until they turn 18 (eg if you have an emergency), but that is also a good thing in that your husband cannot get at it either and it is not a matrimonial asset but belongs to each child.

Another way of doing it is by using a bare trust but this is quite expensive to set up (especially as you will ideally want one for each child) and only really worth it if each child is going to be getting more than £9,000 per year.

In the longer term it would also be worthwhile having your uncle and mother change their wills so that instead of naming you as a beneficiary they replace your name with your children (a solicitor would probably suggest replacing your name with something like "the children of stardustbiscuits who survive me" rather than their actual names in case you have any further children - I don't know if that's likely).

Since your children would be the beneficiaries of the will rather than you, the inheritance never becomes a matrimonial asset but becomes the property of the children.

Children under the age of 18 cannot receive any inheritance until they are 18. So, the inheritance will be put in trust and a trustee (presumably you) will be named in the will to look after the inheritance until each child turns 18.

As the trustee, it will be down to you to decide what happens with the inheritance until your children turn 18. If you wanted to use it to, as you say in the OP, invest in property so that there is some income for the children then you, as the trustee, can do that.

Since the inheritance goes directly to your children and not to you it never becomes a matrimonial asset.

Changing a will is something that should only be done by a solicitor or other qualified professional.

Opening a Junior ISA though is very straightforward and there is a very good guide to which are the best ISAs here on money saving expert:-

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/junior-isa/

That is too simplistic. There will be many variables. How long you are married for after you receive the money will be a factor. The only way to really protect the money is for the giver to put it in a trust, or for you to divorce and get a financial settlement before you receive it.

In Scotland the inheritance rules are similar to what you describe.

The non-mingled is a sort of true but sort of not true.
there is nuance and interpretation when you actually divorce and assets you thought were “off limits” CAN be deemed communal property.
its not a risk I’d personally want to take.

He doesn’t have to be a deadbeat to come after you.
I have seen the mildest, most level headed people turn into very vengeful, irritational retribution monsters when it comes to divorce.

you should not expect him to be decent or civil… for every couple that can and do play fair they is another where one party is setting up limited companies or resigning from their job to avoid CMS, transferring assets to family members or just generally spending, moving and hiding assets

the fact this is such a consideration tells me even if you stay in this marriage for now, it’s terminal and you expect it to fail at some point.
on that basis accept nothing unless it’s in a trust…

Don't forget, the savings he has squirrelled away would be a Mario asset too, even if they are just in his name.

But it doesn't sound healthy op. Why did you let him back?

Not the same back story, but my relative changed their will so that my inheritance would be split 3 ways between me and my 2 children.

Get divorced quickly. In the meantime get relatives to leave your inheritance 'in trust' perhaps...he can't get his hands on it then!