Rights of a Spouse or Civil Partner under a Will and the Legal Right Share

The Succession Act gives the surviving spouse or civil partner the right to a share in the estate of their deceased spouse or civil partner regardless of any wishes to the contrary contained in the deceased’s Will. This is known as the “legal right share”.

The legal right share that a surviving spouse or civil partner is entitled to is either:

• Half of the estate if there are no children or
• One third of the estate if there are children.

If a deceased spouse or civil partner leaves a gift to their surviving spouse or civil partner in their Will, then the surviving spouse or civil partner can choose whether to accept the gift in the Will instead of their legal right share or they can insist on their legal right share of the estate regardless of the impact this may have on gifts left to other beneficiaries in the deceased’s Will. The surviving spouse or civil partner does not have to go to court to claim their legal right share and the executor(s) of the estate are obliged to grant the legal right share where applicable.

The legal right share does not apply in the following circumstances:

1. Renunciation of Succession Rights by a Spouse/Civil Partner: A spouse or civil partner may formally renounce or give up their rights to their spouse or civil partner’s estate during their lifetime. This can be by way of a Deed of Renunciation (and independent legal advice) or where parties have separated, a renunciation of each other’s legal right share is usually included in a separation agreement or Judicial Separation court order. Divorce between spouses or dissolution of a civil partnership automatically terminates succession rights between the spouses/civil partners.

1. Where the spouse is “unworthy to succeed”: the legal right share can be lost if the spouse or civil partner is convicted of the murder, manslaughter or attempted murder of the deceased spouse/civil partner or convicted of an offence against the deceased person or a child that carries a sentence of more than 2 years. A surviving spouse or civil partner may also lose their right to the legal right share if they had deserted the deceased for at least two years prior to their death.

Should you have any queries in relation to the above or in relation to Wills in general, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01 2960666.