Disputing an Estate.
In certain situations, it may be appropriate to consider disputing an estate. This can be an emotive and challenging step to take, so understanding if it is right for your circumstance is important.
Find out moreWhat is contentious probate?
Contentious probate is an area of law that relates to disputes over how someone’s estate (money and belongings) is distributed after they have passed away. As specialists in this area, where there is a dispute between the executors, beneficiaries or a third party, Contentious Probate Solicitors can act; protecting your interests, advising you of your rights, mediating, negotiating a settlement or by representing your interests in court.
How can a Certainty Will Search help?
A Certainty Will Search with The National Will Register helps to establish whether a Will is in existence, and that the correct Will is being used to distribute the estate. The result of the Certainty Will Search can therefore materially change the circumstances of a dispute.
Changing the inheritance arrangements
Inheritance disputes often occur following the death of a family member. If you are unhappy with the existing inheritance arrangements it is possible to dispute them legally, depending on your circumstances.
Contentious Probate Solicitor
Finding a Contentious Probate Solicitor
In certain situations, it may be appropriate to consider action with support from a Contentious Probate Solicitor. With The National Will Register, you can find a Contentious Probate Solicitor near you, by entering your postcode.
Claim Checker
Can I Dispute an Inheritance?
If you are unsure whether you can dispute an inheritance, you can take steps to find out by using an online tool. Inheritance dispute specialists, IDR Law, have created a free tool to help you understand the legal issues and give you an instant answer as to whether anything can be done to resolve your situation.
REAL STORIES
Certainty Will Search prevents possible inheritance dispute
The passing of a loved one can lead to disputes within the family.
Those who are set to inherit favourably either under the rules of intestacy or a favoured Will may insist that there is no Will.
Read moreSupportive Resources
Are you a legal professional?
Does your firm have a contentious probate team?
Get in touch with the team to become a listed contentious probate professional and gain access to our estate management platform.
Contact usFAQs
No two scenarios are ever the same however some common scenarios are set out below:
Someone has passed away leaving a Will that is suspicious due to its content, timing and/or choice of executor;
Someone’s estate has been depleted before they passed away by someone other than the deceased meaning the estate is less valuable than expected;
You were expecting to inherit on the deceased’s death but have not been included as a beneficiary in their Will or only to a lesser extent than you anticipated;
You were promised some inheritance but the deceased passed away leaving a testamentary document that does not benefit you;
You were in receipt of financial support from the deceased before their death but do not benefit on their death;
You are named as the executor of a Will but there is a dispute with your co-executor or the beneficiaries; and
There is a dispute as to the occupation or sale of the deceased’s property.
Clients often say to us that they thought their loved one had a Will but they cannot find it, that someone is distributing an estate according to a Will that they are sure was revoked by a later Will or that someone is refusing to provide information about a Will. A Will search with The National Will Register can sometimes solve these issues by locating the Will in question and details of the solicitor’s firm that acted in its preparation. In can also be extremely useful to confirm that the deceased did indeed pass away intestate. We have had situations acting for cohabitees of a deceased person where we have been looking to advance claims pursuant to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975, proprietary estoppel and constructive trust because the deceased was presumed to pass away intestate so our client was not a beneficiary. We have been able to do a Certainty Will Search and find out that there was, in fact, a Will benefitting our client. The intestacy beneficiaries had not done such a search because it was not in their best interests to uncover a Will. Finding the Will through a Certainty Will Search saved our client the uncertainty, let alone costs, of a dispute.