Fathers estate left to 1 child

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michellebee

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Hi guys
Just seeking some advice , my father passed away and the will came out , my brother is the executor, there is just two siblings, I was left a small sum of money and my brother was left the estate , neither of us had a good relationship with this man , we both had a horrible childhood and would of never called this man a father figure , my mother had passed away a few years ago and her inheritance was split even with me and my brother. Unfortunately my brother is not willing to split and we have 0 contact , we were both two kids in it together our whole childhood and neither had a relationship with this toxic so called father , I have taken action with my own solicitor and put a caveat on along with a letter heading for section 117 any advice would be much appreciated
 
Based on what you wrote - why bother? Your father is gone, you have no relationship with your sibling.
Try to forget about it and move on.
 
How much is the estate worth?

You might get something going down the Section 117 route but legal costs could outweigh any potential benefit.
 
The will left something to you both, albeit very unequally. They were the man’s wishes when he wrote the will. There is nothing to say children should inherit equally. The man might have done it that way to sow dissent between you both, who knows.
The issue seems very unfair to you, but no child should have an expectation of inheriting anything from a parent.
You should just accept the will as written, repair the rift with your brother and get on with life.
 
Clamball said:
There is nothing to say children should inherit equally
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There is not, but Section 117 says:

— (1) Where, on application by or on behalf of a child of a testator, the court is of opinion that the testator has failed in his moral duty to make proper provision for the child in accordance with his means, whether by his will or otherwise, the court may order that such provision shall be made for the child out of the estate as the court thinks just.
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OP could apply to a court on the basis that the father had been deficient in provision and that she deserves more.

This could be expensive, emotionally draining, and take a long time. I would not go down this road unless the estate was substantial and the amount I had been left very little.
 
Was Section 117 not written more with intent to provide for children (i.e. those under 18 years of age) ?

That said, I'm not unsympathetic to the original posters circumstances, and think I'd be very annoyed, if it happened to me, to the extent that I'd also be considering challenging the will.

Was the author of the will definitely "compose mentis", and not ill, under duress etc.?
 
I think section 117 can apply to adult children as well, for example one stayed home on the farm working as an unpaid labourer, the other was educated to a high degree, set up in a house etc. If the parent split the estate 50:50 the adult child at home could say they were at a disadvantage in life due to poor education and working for years in the promise of a house or farm. They would probably succeed in a section 117 claim. Does the OP have a disadvantage over the sibling growing up? It sounds like they were both treated equally badly.

Or did the author of the will set out to deliberately cause the beneficiaries to fall out, hoping they would loose it all paying for court cases.
 
Unfortunately we were both treated the same growing up , dad didn’t love neither of us , he had said some horrific things to both of us our whole life , example “ shoot your self you not worth a life “ so I do believe we should be 50/50 as it was the same for both of us our whole life ‍♀️
 
michellebee said:
Unfortunately we were both treated the same growing up , dad didn’t love neither of us , he had said some horrific things to both of us our whole life , example “ shoot your self you not worth a life “ so I do believe we should be 50/50 as it was the same for both of us our whole life ‍♀️
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What does your lawyer think?

Based on the opinions expressed here you don’t have much chance of winning, but if your lawyer thinks you have a realistic chance then it might be worth appealing.
 
The solicitor(s) will be delighted to take your case for a fee or a cut of the estate - presumably your brother will contest the case
  • An application must be made within six months from the first taking out of representation of the deceased’s estate. There is no provision for an extension of time.
  • Costs are at the discretion of the Court.
  • All section 117 cases are heard in camera and the judgments are redacted.
  • The High Court and the Circuit Court have jurisdiction to hear section 117 cases, the latter once the value of property is not greater than €3 million.
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It sounds like your brother decided to try to get whatever he could from your father so made amends in return for the Lucre. I know lots of examples who took advantage of these situations in families to sway the money their way. I know of at least two families who have seriously fallen out over it. Is it worth the hassle ?
 
Perhaps this could have a bearing on this situation but just wondering if there is any truth to the following or not? Spoke with, or should I say listened in amusement to, a gentleman with lots of personality :) a few years back. His father had died and had changed his will very close to his death. It was maintained that a brother (who had recently acquired a new young, foreign girlfriend) had put pressure on the father to change his will and had taken him to the solicitor to do so and leave everything to one son only instead of split between the two.

He maintained that he would be fighting the case all the way and that the costs for this fight come out of the estate so it would not bother him. He also said that if he lost he would just keep on appealing until all the estate was gone just to stop the other two from getting his share!

I presume that what he was saying is incorrect although he did say he had checked this with his own solicitor?
 
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