Chil­dren, Spous­es, and cohab­itees of peo­ple who die IntEs­tate, could ben­e­fit from pro­posed changes to inher­i­tance laws pub­lished in December.

New pro­pos­als include giv­ing more rights to the sur­viv­ing part­ner and chil­dren of unmar­ried cou­ples, and to remov­ing com­plex and cost­ly ​‘life inter­est’ trust arrange­ments imposed on some Spous­es in favour of a sim­pler form of shar­ing Estates.

Cur­rent Intes­ta­cy rules date back to 1925, and do not reflect cul­tur­al and soci­etal changes which have tak­en place over the last 50 years.

If you die with­out a Will (“IntEs­tate”), then the law will dic­tate who amongst your rel­a­tives receives what, which may mean rel­a­tives you do not like or have not seen for years.

Sean Bar­row, Senior Solic­i­tor said: ​“Thank­ful­ly the Law Com­mis­sion has pub­lished pro­pos­als which will only ben­e­fit and sim­ply Intes­ta­cy rules for cohab­itees. It has long been a com­mon mis­ap­pre­hen­sion that even mar­ried cohab­itees will receive the whole of the deceased Spouse’s Estate.

The sim­plest way to avoid the prob­lems faced with Intes­ta­cy is to make a Will. This ensures your Estate is passed to the rel­a­tives, friends, or char­i­ties you wish, and ensures Inher­i­tance Tax pro­vi­sions are made.”

-ends-

For more infor­ma­tion about Wills & Intes­ta­cy, please con­tact Sean Bar­row on 01625 523988 or mail@​JBGass.​com