Family Provision

Abstract

This chapter addresses family provision, with particular reference to the Supreme Court’s decision in Ilott v The Blue Cross. Under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, certain persons can apply for financial provision out of the deceased’s estate on the grounds that the deceased’s will or intestacy (or a combination of the two) does not make reasonable financial provision for the applicant. The persons entitled to apply are the deceased’s surviving spouse or civil partner, former spouses or civil partners who have not remarried or entered a subsequent civil partnership, children, children of the family, dependants, and cohabitants. The remainder of the chapter covers the powers of court to make orders; the ‘standards’ applicable to applicants and the ‘matters’ which the court must take into account in applications for an order under the 1975 Act; and anti-avoidance provisions of the 1975 Act.