Intestacy

Question 1

Intestacy distribution - no issue

Answer 1

○ Surviving spouse/civil partner absolutely + personal chattels and fix net sum

Question 2

Intestacy distribution - issue + living spouse/ civil partner

Answer 2

Surviving spouse/civil partner takes all the personal chattels, a fixed net sum and half of the residuary estate (absolutely), and the other half for the issue

Question 3

Intestacy distribution - issue but no spouse/cibil partner

Answer 3

The issue take the whole residuary estate

Question 4

Intestacy distribution - no spouse/civil partner or issue - who do we look at next ?

Answer 4

Parents
Brothers and sisters of the whole blood Brothers and sisters of the half blood (2 Grandparents (3)
Uncles and aunts (being brothers and sisters of the whole blood of a parent) (4)
Uncles and aunts (being brothers and sisters of the half blood of a parent)
In default to the Crown or to the Dutchy of Lancaster or the Duke of Cornwall bona vacantia

Question 5

S.49 Administration of Estates Act (1925 Act)

Answer 5

talks about partial intestacy and how it operates

Question 6

S. 46 Administration of Estates Act (1925 Act)

Answer 6

Talks about the order of intestacy distribution

Question 7

Who are issue ?

Answer 7

• Children
  ○ Legitimate
  ○ Illegitimate - Family Law Reform Act 1969, s.14 (unmaried parents)
  ○ Adopted - Adoption of Children Act 1949, ss.9(2) and 9(3)(a)
  ○ Evnetresa mare ( a child in the womb)
  ○ Human Gertilisation and Embrylogy Act 1990 and 2008
  
  • Grandchildren (only concerned with them if there’s a predeceasing situation)
    Great-grandchildren (only concerned with them if there’s a predeceasing situation)

Question 8

Personal chattels ?

Answer 8

○ Administration of Estates Act 1925, s.55(1)(x)
§ ‘tangible movable property, other than any such property which - consists of money or securities for money, or was used at the death of the intestate solely or mainly for business purposes, or was held at the death of the intestate solely as an investment.’
§ Re Chaplin [1950] Ch 507
□ ‘Is this small vessel an article of personal use?’ - (Vaisey J, 509) - it was the definition back then
It was a yacht - it was a chattel

Question 9

Fixed net sum

Answer 9

270,000

Question 10

Per stripes

Answer 10

by branch of the tree; order of distribution; if one predeceases and has two children then they what he has distributed equally between them so 12:2=6, but if has 3 then 12:3=4, they ONLY take what their parent would have gotten, they do NOT calculate equally with the parent’s siblings which are in the branch above them; first gen -> second gen

Question 11

Contingent vs vested interest

Answer 11

• Contingent interest - under 18
  ○ Statutory trust fund - automatically created
  ○ Once they turn 18 -> their interest vests and they are entitled to whatever is held on trust for you
  ○ Power of advancement - access to the trust fund if you need money for education, living etc.
  Vested interest - 18 or above

Question 12

What if beneficiaries die before they turn 18?

Answer 12

Their share fails to vest -> falls back to the residuary estate -> redistributed between other living beneficiaries

Question 13

28 day rule

Answer 13

only applies to spouses (NOT to others such as issues); the husband/wife is treated as they have not survived the intestate (1925 Act, s.46 (2A))

Question 14

How to exclude any property from passing on intestacy ?

Answer 14

○ Under will
○ By survivorship - you can own a property jointly (joint tenancy)
§ Their property transfer to the joint tenant by survivorship
By nomination - as a beneficiary in a pension fund or insurance

Question 15

Is money a personal chattel ?

Answer 15

NO