Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) (NI) Order 1979

This session will provide an overview of dealing with claims under the Order and will cover:

Substantive law:

• The basis of a claim;

• Eligibility;

• The difficulty of assessing quantum;

• A review of some recent case law.

  Procedure:

• Getting starting and taking instructions;

• Interplay with other claims;

• The pre-action protocol and court process;

• The role of personal representatives;

• Tax and other implications of orders and settlements;

• Some traps for the unwary.

The session will be delivered by Sheena Grattan BL. Sheena is a practising Chancery barrister in Northern Ireland specialising in private client work. Previously she was a senior lecturer in the Law School of Queen's University, Belfast lecturing in Equity (including Trusts), Land Law, Inheritance and Law and Revenue, having started her career as a solicitor in private practice. Sheena is the author of several legal texts including Succession Law in Northern Ireland (SLS), and, with James Kessler QC, Drafting Trusts & Will Trusts in Northern Ireland (Bloomsbury). She is a founding member of the STEP: Northern Ireland branch and in 2012 was the recipient of a STEP Founder's award for outstanding achievement. Sheena is the current Chair of the NI Branch of STEP. She has been an examiner and tutor for both the Administration of Trusts and the Administration of Estates components of the STEP/CLT Diploma programme in Northern Ireland since its inception.