Proprietary estoppel - the expectation of inheritance

There are a variety of claims that can be made against a deceased’s estate, such as a challenge to the validity of their last will, or a claim for reasonable financial provision under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. 

One of the most common claims made against an agricultural estate is that of proprietary estoppel. Essentially, this is where an individual claims that land or property should have passed to him or her as the deceased promised it would pass to them on their death, and the claimant relied on that promise to their detriment. Typically, such claims are brought by children who have worked at family farms for little or no payment, on the expectation that the farm would pass to them on the death of their parents.  

The recent decision of James v James [2018] highlighted the need for claimants to demonstrate that a particular promise had been made or an act taken that created the expectation of inheritance in order to be successful in bringing such a claim. In this case the deceased made a will excluding his only son, Sam, with whom he had operated a farming partnership during his lifetime. Unusually, Sam had been paid for this work. In addition to challenging the validity of his father’s will for lack of capacity, Sam claimed by virtue of proprietary estoppel that he was entitled to the land that was passed to his mother and sister in the will.  

In determining the claim, Judge Matthews found that there was no evidence with a sufficient degree of clarity to demonstrate that an assurance had been made by the deceased. A statement of the deceased’s current intentions does not amount to an assurance which a person can rely upon to claim an interest in land. Further, as Sam had never thought about pursuing other means of employment and was paid for his work, Judge Matthews found that he had not suffered any detriment, as he would not have done anything differently had his father made clear he would not pass the farm to him.  

Proprietary estoppel claims are complicated to bring or defend. Therefore, it is vital that you receive expert legal advice if you believe you may have such a claim, or need to defend one, which is why here at Birkett Long we have a specialist inheritance disputes team who would be happy to assist you.  

Call the team on 0330 818 3212 for a no obligation conversation about your situation or alternatively, you can email me at [email protected]