A few years back my dad died and his wife ( my step mother) was rightly left everything.
When she dies she will leave what’s left to her parasitic son.
We have never got on and haven’t spoke for years, When my dad died my brother and I asked to see the will ,at which point she said it was nothing to do with us.
She has never contributed to anything materially. When my parents divorced we ended up staying with my dad, so my mum didn’t take a penny of the settlement as she didn’t want us boys to go without.
I feel that legally my brother and I should have some sort of claim on what’s left and morally so does my mum.
The evil one hasn’t popped her clogs yet but she is in poor health.
Just want to be ready for when the day arrives. I must add that I don’t need any money ,I just want to receive something that my dad worked bloody hard for.

Dad left it to wife. It’s now hers. She can leave it to the Cat’s home if that is what tickles her coconuts.

If you had a problem when your Dad died it should have been dealt with then. You didn’t. In retrospect it sounds like you regret that now.

If you don’t need the money anyway; it’s time to let it go.

We have never got on and haven’t spoke for years, When my dad died my brother and I asked to see the will ,at which point she said it was nothing to do with us.

Often remarried husbands leave clauses in the will that leaves money/house to 2nd wife so she has somewhere to live, but some or all of it (esp. house) to be passsed back to deceased father’s own (as opposed to step) children when 2nd wife dies.

Call me cynical, but if your stepmum didn’t want you to see the will when your dad died, do you think there is a chance that it was because your dad had done just that with his will too?

You can request a copy of the will from the local births marriges and deaths office or their hq at Somerset house in london.

We recently updated our Will and we was very surprised
has any Will can be contested our planner told us

So I wouldn’t worry what she has to say. But make sure
you have a dam good Solicitor in place when things happen

We recently updated our Will and we was very surprised
has any Will can be contested our planner told us

Interesting.

Any legal document can be contested but there won’t necessarily be a good case to do so. If it’s clearly written, you’ll struggle to get a Solicitor to represent you in a challenge. Which is why Wills (or any contract) mustn’t be ambiguous.

the SO’s grandfather died a few years back all went to the second wife, when she then died, it got very very messy, 5 years later and after lots of legal fees the children of the first marriage did get a little but nothing like they were meant to have.

There were lots of issues, bank withdrawals, abuse of power attorney, diversion of money, gifts, fraudulent wills, etc etc.

any Will can be contested

Of course it can. But that doesn’t mean it will be upheld.

Should you not have spoken to the executor of your Dad’s will? Did he have an ‘official’ will or some hopeless DIY job?

If there was a will when your father died you should ask to see it (really you should have done this at the time), the more resistance you encounter or denial one existed the more you should press as that is suspicious behaviour. It is possible your father left his wife a life interest in the house for example but upon his wife’s death it should be sold and the proceeds divided. It could of course be he had no will and thus automatically it passes to his wife and as noted she can do with the assets as she sees fit.

When your fathers wife dies you can challenge her will – first step is to put a caveat on it (look up online) this is easy to do and prevents will being executed u til the situation is resolved, any resolution will likely require solicitors etc

Where there’s a will there’s a relative

Personally, I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction.

You don’t need it… you said.

Your dad was your dad, always will be… may he RIP.

I’d just forget her/it, and walk away.

Executor should be following the will and it won’t get Probate if not Shirley (Up here anyway)?

The will and grant of probate are public documents. You can get a copy through the proper channels. Speak to a solicitor or your local prbate registry if unsure how to go about getting a copy.

However, I think this “life interest” issue is a red herring. If all your step mum had was a life interest in the property, she has no legal title to pass to her own son.

However, I would be suspicious why your stepmum would not allow you to see the will. Get your hands on a copy if only for your own peace of mind. As Al says, try to find out who the executor(s) were. They are under strict legal duties and are liable to the beneficiaries.

It is a complex area, your first issue is that you mention that your Dad died a few years ago. To bring a claim you would normally need to do something within 6 months to a maximum of two years after the death.

That said if there was a Will which was admitted to probate ( you can get confirmation and a copy from the principal probate registry)and the executors have not done what the will said they could be potentially liable for their actions. This means that if you did not get something that you were due you could sue the executors.

If everything passed to your stepmother by survivorship – i.e. it was in joint names when dad died or without the need for a grant of probate because his assets were relatively few – then I am afraid that you will be wasting time and effort.

If no grant of probate was attained (which is often the case) then you could get a court order to force the executors to fulfil their duties.

In any of the challenge/ court situations you will need a solicitor who specializes in contentious probate. I will warn you now this process is neither cheap (understatement) nor quick.

If everything was above board when Dad passed away then the stepmother can do what she wants with her money – unless you are being maintained by her you are unlikely to be able to make a claim. You might want to look up the Inheritance (provision for family and dependants) Act 1975.

Sorry it is not more positive but I hope this helps.