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Individual / Will Disputes & Contentious Probate
If you have been left out of a will, or have not received enough to meet your needs, you may be able to claim reasonable financial provision from the estate under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. Our specialist solicitors advise those bringing and defending 1975 Act claims across Greater Manchester and the North West.
Call us on 0161 930 5151 or email willdisputeteam@gorvins.com for a confidential conversation about an Inheritance Act claim.
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, often called the Inheritance Act or a 1975 Act claim, allows certain people to ask the court for financial provision from a deceased person’s estate. Crucially, this is not about saying the will is invalid. It accepts the will (or the intestacy rules) as valid, but argues that it fails to make reasonable financial provision for the person bringing the claim.
It exists because, in England and Wales, people are generally free to leave their estate to whoever they wish. The 1975 Act is the main way the law steps in to protect close family members and dependants who have been left without reasonable provision.
Only certain categories of people can bring a claim. You may be eligible if you are:
Cohabitees, stepchildren and other dependants are common claimants, because these are exactly the people the intestacy rules often leave with nothing.
What is reasonable depends on who is claiming. There are two standards:
The court weighs a set of factors set out in section 3 of the Act, including:
For spouses, the court also considers the age of the applicant, the length of the marriage, and the contribution made to the family. For cohabitees, the length of the relationship and their role in the household are relevant. Inheritance Act claims are highly fact-specific, and outcomes turn on the particular circumstances rather than fixed entitlements.
If a claim succeeds, the court has wide powers. It can order a lump sum, regular payments, the transfer of specific property, the settlement of property on trust, or a variation of how the estate is divided. The aim is to make appropriate provision for the claimant, not to rewrite the whole estate.
This is critical. A claim must generally be brought within six months of the grant of probate or letters of administration. The court has a discretion to allow a late claim, but that discretion is not guaranteed, and out-of-time applications are risky. The courts have made clear the deadline is taken seriously, so it is essential to seek advice as early as possible, ideally as soon as you think you may have been left without reasonable provision. Confidence level: Very confident, the six-month deadline is set by section 4 of the Act.
Although claims are issued in court and can take up to around twelve months to conclude, the great majority settle without a trial, often through negotiation or mediation. Settling has real advantages: it is quicker, less expensive, less stressful, and keeps control of the outcome with the parties rather than a judge. We always look to resolve claims constructively where we can, while being fully prepared to take a case to a final hearing if a fair settlement cannot be reached.
Our Will Disputes and Contentious Probate team acts both for people bringing 1975 Act claims and for executors and beneficiaries defending them. We can:
If your concern is instead that the will itself may be invalid, see our page on contesting a will. If you cannot find the will, see lost wills.
Gorvins is a Legal 500 recognised firm based in Stockport, acting for clients across Greater Manchester, the North West and nationally.
Call us on 0161 930 5151, email willdisputeteam@gorvins.com, or complete the enquiry form below and we will call you back.
Spouses and civil partners, former spouses and civil partners who have not remarried, cohabitees of at least two years, children of any age, those treated as a child of the family such as stepchildren, and anyone who was being financially maintained by the deceased.
Yes, if you fall within an eligible category. An Inheritance Act claim does not depend on being named in the will. It argues that the will, or the intestacy rules, failed to make reasonable financial provision for you.
Generally six months from the grant of probate or letters of administration. The court can allow a late claim in some circumstances, but this is not guaranteed, so you should take advice as soon as possible.
Yes. A person who lived with the deceased as if they were a spouse or civil partner for the two years immediately before the death can claim, even though cohabitees have no automatic right to inherit under the intestacy rules.
It depends on the standard that applies and the section 3 factors, including your needs and resources, the size of the estate, and the needs of others. For most claimants the court awards reasonable provision for maintenance; for a surviving spouse the standard is more generous. Claims are highly fact-specific.
No. Although a claim is issued in court, most settle through negotiation or mediation without a trial, which is usually quicker, cheaper and less stressful.
Wills, Trust & Probate
