Sideways Disinheritance is a phenomenon that occurs when one partner dies leaving children and their spouse or partner subsequently remarried. Remarriage by a spouse or partner who’s been previously widowed will invalidate the Will that they left with that first partner. Their first partner’s wishes may therefore not be respected and what can happen is, you can have a long and happy relationship with your wife, have a couple of children, but then pass away and when your wife remarries, your wealth which you thought was going to your children will pass to her new spouse. What you worked for during your lifetime, passing to somebody you never even knew.
This is a situation that most people want to avoid, and it’s a situation that’s really easily avoided by using a properly drafted Will with a Family Asset Trust in it. A Family Trust will ensure that the children will always benefit from what you leave behind, whilst making sure that your widow will be able to benefit from the assets during her lifetime. The same goes if a husband remarried after his first wife has died. He can continue to use the assets as a widower but he’s unable to redirect them away from the children of the family.
If you need to find out more about sideways disinheritance, please give us a call on 01778 752 861.
