Three brothers are caught up in a bitter inheritance dispute over the estate of their deceased mother, reports the Daily Mail.
Rachel Heath died in October 2015 and left behind an estate worth an estimated £1.8 million. Under the terms of her will, the assets were to be shared equally between her three sons, who were also all named as executors of her estate.
Two of her sons, Jeremy and Dominic, have apparently established very successful medical careers. The middle son, Timothy, never left home and is now seeking a larger share of his mother’s estate on the grounds that he acted as her unpaid carer for the last eight years of her life, while she suffered from dementia.
He alleges that his brothers were able to concentrate on their careers and build up their own personal wealth, and that neither of them had helped to care for their mother.
Two full-time carers were employed to look after Mrs Heath, earning £45,000 each. Timothy claims he provided an equal amount of care and that there was an ‘implicit contract’ and therefore the ‘estate should honour its debts’.
His brothers dispute his claim, and have also sought to have Timothy removed as executor, claiming there was a conflict of interest between the role and his own personal interests.
The judge hearing the case has not so far reached a decision over the distribution of the estate, but has said he accepts the fact that Timothy effectively acted as an unpaid carer for his mother. However, he also acknowledged the conflict of interest posed by Timothy’s position as executor, and has ordered that he be replaced by an independent solicitor.
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