Nick Mendoza, a solicitor at Howard Kennedy, discusses how the recent Ilott V Mitson case could affect the way your clients draw up their wills.
Enshrined under English law is the principle of ‘testamentary freedom’, whereby a person is free to choose to whom they will leave their estate upon their death. Testamentary freedom is, though, restricted by the recognition that there is a need to provide for family members in certain circumstances. The Inheritance (Provision For Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (the ‘Act’) provides a statutory framework by which a family member or dependant can make a claim against the estate of the deceased in circumstances where no provision, or inadequate provision, has been made for them under th...
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