Legal Rights Claims

Unlike England in Scotland (and indeed in several other countries) “legal rights”  is the automatic right in the estate of a deceased  in favour of the deceased’s spouse or children,  regardless of  whether the deceased died testate or intestate.  In the case Hutton’s Trustees v Hutton’s Trustees Lord Salvesen said; 

I regard the right that the law gives to children in their father’s estate, in common with the laws of most civilised countries except England, as a very important check on capricious or unjust testaments” 

In this article Peter Murrin looks at the steps to be taken when there is an unexpected legal rights claim against an estate from someone  coming  to light after the death of the deceased.

Source  Journal  Law Society of Scotland