Tony is in his early 60s. When he was five years of age, his mother left his biological father and commenced a relationship with Tony’s stepfather. Tony did not have a continuing relationship with his biological father and was part of his mother and step-father’s family unit until he left home at the age of 18. Tony’s stepfather has three other children who also lived with them.
Tony’s mother passed away more than 10 years ago and she left the whole of her estate to Tony’s step-father. Tony’s step-father recently passed away and Tony was surprised to discover that he was not included in the will. His stepfather’s will left his modest estate to his three biological children only.
Tony has very little in the way of savings and is concerned about legal fees. Nonetheless, he reluctantly made an appointment with a solicitor. After advising his solicitor of his financial circumstances and his relationship with his step-father, his solicitor informed him that he was happy to be retained on a “no win no fee” basis and that if Tony was not successful in obtaining further provision from his stepfather’s estate, he would not be charged any legal costs. His solicitor immediately wrote to the executor who agreed not to distribute any assets of the estate.
Tony did not wish to cause his step-father’s estate to incur excessive legal fees and wanted to make an early offer of settlement. His solicitor advised him as to what a reasonable offer would be and after some negotiations with the executor, they were able to resolve the matter quickly and without commencing court action. This preserved the modest estate and Tony’s relationship with his step-siblings.
The result was that the Tony was able to receive much needed provision from his stepfather’s estate relatively quickly and as the parties agreed that his costs would be paid out of the estate, he had no out-of-pocket expenses. The limitation period that applies to this type of claim is normally 12 months from the date of death. Your individual circumstances may differ and accordingly, this column cannot be relied upon as legal advice.
