Predatory Marriage: is your family at risk of disinheritance?

This type of marriage is also known as a “Precatory Marriage” where a person is wooed into marriage with the specific purpose of inheriting the spouses assets.  It isn’t even essential to make a new Will, as the old one will be invalidated by the marriage, and under the Rules of Intestacy, the new spouse will inherit most or all of the estate automatically. To be fair, couple are often just friends but get married to look respectable, not from any greed.  If that is the reason, new Wills can resolve the situation in a way which will be reasonably acceptable to all. Get in touch.

Registrars are being trained in an attempt to reduce the prevalence of predatory marriage, but they are never going to catch all of them: they can only stop the obvious one where there is a lack of capacity.  Flattery and lots of attention can turn most heads eventually, especially if they are lonely. The consequences are not likely to be fully understood – especially if it is a predatory marriage.

Very often, the predator will disappear, only to reappear and shock the family when the victim dies to collect their “winnings.”

Where a person enters into a marriage without the mental capacity to do so, that marriage can be held to be voidable under the Nullity of Marriage Act 1971. However, the impact of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 is that the marriage will NOT be null and void, but rather merely voidable which means that the Coiurt must validate the cancellation of the marriage BEFORE death. To be clear, Nthe marriage, even though unlawfully entered into, continues to exist up until such time as it is declared void by the court.

It is NOT possible to retrospectively cancel the marriage and reinstate an earlier will.

Whilst there might be potential claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family & Dependants) Act 1975, such claims may not be successful and are expensive to mount.

It is, therefore, essential if there is a predatory marriage, for the victim to execute a new will. If the person who did not have capacity to enter into a marriage they probably do not have capacity to write a new will, then the only alternative is to apply to the Court for a statutory Will – again, neither a rapid or cheap process.

Marriage Caveat

It is possible to put a marriage Caveat in place which will cause the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages to examine any potential marriage with extra vigilance – but it is not something I can advise on.   

If the person does have mental capacity, then it is possible to resolve the situation in a way which is reasonably fair to all concerned – though there may be a tussle if it was really a predatory rather than friendly marriage – get in touch!