Court decision highlights merits of automatic inheritance rights for cohabitants

The reporting of Joy Williams' successful court application for a share of her former partner's house brings back into the spotlight the issue of inheritance after living together without getting married or forming a civil partnership.

Cohabitants are not treated in the same way as a spouse on death. When one of them dies the survivor does not have automatic rights under the intestacy rules to inherit their partner's estate irrespective of how long they lived together and even if they had children together. A surviving cohabitant may make a claim at court under family provision legislation if no or inadequate provision has been made by will or through intestacy.

Although Joy Williams owned the family home with Norman Martin Norman never divorced his wife Maureen. When Norman died of a heart attack in 2012 his share passed automatically to Maureen because Norman and Joy owned their house as tenants in common. But the trial judge yesterday decided his share should now go to Joy considering it a fair and reasonable result. This was because they had shared the house as part of a loving and committed...

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