Howe v Howe: estranged child awarded £125,000 from father’s £1.4 million estate
An adult child claimant has received an award of £125,000 from her father’s estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.
In March 2020, Roger Howe (the deceased) passed, leaving an estate of £1.4 million. His relationship with his only child (the claimant) was volatile, and the deceased had made it clear he wished to exclude her from the Will.
Initially, the claimant attempted to set aside the Will, claiming forgery. However, after the death of the witness and the loss of the claimant’s pro bono solicitor, progress on this claim was prevented. After acquiring new legal representation, the claimant attempted to introduce new expert evidence of the forgery. The permissions for this, were declined by the court causing the claimant to withdraw her claim and pay the executor’s costs of £42,000 (‘the costs order’).
Following the failure of her previous claim, the claimant brought a 1975 Act claim of £450,000 against the deceased’s estate. The executors assigned the costs order to Leck Holdings Limited, to serve a statutory demand on the claimant for the payment. Accordingly, the claimant applied to have this statutory demand set aside. Upon dismissal, the decision was appealed and Leck Holdings Limited were no longer able to enforce the costs order pending the determination of the 1975 Act claim due to the claimant now having a counterclaim that exceeded the debt of £42,000.
The matter proceeded to full trial in January 2025.
The claim was successful as the Judge held the Will failed to make reasonable financial provision for the claimant. The claimant’s health needs, which prevented her from working, were considered strong enough for provision despite being estranged from the deceased for such a long period of time.
The award is to be held on discretionary trust to allow the claimant to continue claiming benefits and to prevent her from spending the money unwisely. The court directed the funds to be used for:
The claimant’s debts
White goods, including a car
To make provision for the claimant’s health needs including therapy and new breast implants which were deemed as crucial to her confidence
An income shortfall for the next ten years
The court rejected a claim for accommodation, as the claimant’s housing is already funded by the local authority.
This case shows that even if a child is estranged and not included in a Will, they may still be able to claim financial support from the estate. In this situation, although the claimant had originally tried to challenge the Will, causing problems for the estate, they avoided having to pay legal costs three years later by making a successful claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.
The court accepted this because:
The original probate claim was made in good faith
The costs order was on a standard basis
The estate had assigned the costs order debt to third party, Leck Holdings Limited, for enforcement
The Inheritance Act allows the following categories of people to bring a claim against an estate for reasonable financial provision where they feel this has not been met:
Spouses
Civil partners
Co-habiting partners of at least two years
People financially maintained by the deceased
Adult and minor children (including people who were not biological children but were treated as a child of the deceased)
The court will consider various factors including financial positions and needs, obligations owed by the deceased, the size of the estate, any physical/mental disability affecting the claimant and/or beneficiary of the estate and any other factors deemed relevant.
Claims under the Inheritance Act must be issued in court within 6 months of the date the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration is issued. Get in contact now and ensure your claim succeeds.
Contact Katherine to discuss this further.
