The Rights of Cohabitating Partner in Intestacy - Case Study Example

Download file to see previous pages If the net estate is more than £ 250,000, then, the first £ 250,000 together with the personal possession to civil partner/spouse. Fifty per cent of the balance should be equally shared among kids. The civil partner /spouse will also have the right to the interest on the balance amount of deceased estate during his lifetime only, and then children of the civil partner /spouse will receive the same in equal shares after the lifetime of the civil partner or spouse. (www.graysons.co.uk).

In the case of intestacy, if the claimant is not a registered civil partner or married, then he may not get a share in the deceased property automatically. If the deceased has not provided for the cohabitating partner in some other way, then such partner can make a claim under the provisions of the “Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975.”

In the case of cohabitation, the surviving partner has to demonstrate that she or he had maintained either partly or wholly by the deceased. Further, a cohabitating partner has to make the claim within the 6 months from the date of the issue of letters of administration. (www.direct.gov.uk)

The position of children’s of the cohabitated couple is somewhat awkward under U.K laws. Schedule 1 to the Children’s Ac 1989 offers power to the courts to order some financial relief for the advantage of children despite the status of the parent’s affiliation. (Barrington, A,2001).

This case was about the rights over a property over which cohabitation partners lived together before their separation. This case codifies a new structure within which cohabitant rights are to be decided and will pave to greater simplicity and certainty for future cases. In this case, the cohabitant couples separated after having four children. There was one residential place, which was co-owned by them and a suit was filed the estranged male partner for equal division. Finally, the House of Lords upheld the Court of Appeal’s ruling that Ms Dowden was entitled to 65% and Mr Stack to 35% House of Lords might have given higher share to female partner on considering the factor that she had four children and also contributed substantially for the purchase of that house.   ...Download file to see next pagesRead More