Father living a double life

Another mediation success for inheritance lawyer Naomi Ireson, representing the daughter of a man who had been living a double life.

Naomi Ireson represented a client, who for confidentiality reasons we will refer to as ‘Miss M’. The prime objective of Miss M’s claim was to overturn her father’s Will on the basis of ‘undue influence’. Miss M also pursued a claim for reasonable financial provision from her father’s estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

The background to the case was that Miss M’s father had been living a double life. In one life he had been a close and loving father, whilst in another life he had been in a relationship with a female who was completely unknown to Miss M and her sister.

When Miss M’s father died, his Will left his entire estate to the mystery female. Miss M received nothing.

The Will had been prepared by a local Will writer and the involvement of the mystery woman in the preparation of the Will was questionable. The Will was at odds with the relationship Miss M had with her father and in fact, her father told Miss M he had not made a Will.

Miss M therefore consulted Naomi about her inheritance rights and following Naomi’s advice a claim was made on the basis that the Will was invalid due to Undue Influence. An Inheritance Act claim was also made.

Rather than go to court the parties agreed to mediate, and this enabled Naomi to negotiate an excellent settlement for Miss M, who received a substantial proportion of her late father’s estate.

If you have discovered that a loved one was living a double life and would like to know what your inheritance rights are, then contact our specialist team for expert guidance and details of No Win, No Fee funding.

Call us on 0333 888 0407. Alternatively you can use this form to request a free consultation, or you can send an email to us at [email protected]

Father living a double life