Confusing Will which needs clarification

UrbanOutcask

My brother and I could really do with some help understanding our late father's will who died in 2015, mainly around the following 3 sections.
I am reading this correctly? Because his partner survived him by over 30 days (and is still alive), that the Money Bequest and Further Gift of Residue are irrelevant?
Have my brother and I inherited our father's half of the house? We are being pressured to agree the Twenty-five thousand pounds comes out of our father's interest in the property.

9. Gift of Residue

I give my Residuary Estate to my partner PARTNER_NAME subject to her surviving me by 30 days unless she and I die in circumstances where it cannot be known which of us survived the other then this 30 days survival condition shall not apply but if this gift fails then the following provisions shall apply instead.

10. Money Bequest

I give to my partner's grandson GRANDSON_NAME free of all taxes the sum of Twenty-five thousand pounds subject to his surviving me and attaining 25 years of age and until such attainment, the income thereof shall be accumulated or applied wholly or in part by my Trustees in their absolute discretion from time to time for his maintenance education or benefit.

10. Further Gift of Residue

I give my Residuary Estate for such of my son SON_ONE_NAME and my son SON_TWO_NAME as shall survive me and if more than one in equal shares and if either of them shall fail to obtain a vested interest leaving issue who survive me then such issue shall take by substitution such failed share and if there shall be more than one of such issue they shall take in equal shares per stirpes but so that no issue shall take whose parent is alive and so capable of taking.

Keep_pedalling

There is nothing ambiguous about the will, the £25k to the grandson was conditional on the partner not surviving 30 days and as she did he gets nothing. If his partner wants him to have that money then she can gift it to him from her inheritance not from part of the estate left to you and your sibling.

Savvy_Sue

As the house isn't mentioned in what you've posted, I don't think anyone can possibly know whether or not you've inherited half a house. 

As for the £25K to the grandson, I don't think he gets that, any more than you get the Further Gift of Residue - it reads to me as if his partner inherited, that part of the will did not fail, so the following provisions do NOT apply. 

But IANAL, and you may need to consult one. Who is the executor? Who drew up this will? 

Marcon

UrbanOutcask said:

My brother and I could really do with some help understanding our late father's will who died in 2015, mainly around the following 3 sections.
I am reading this correctly? Because his partner survived him by over 30 days (and is still alive), that the Money Bequest and Further Gift of Residue are irrelevant?
Have my brother and I inherited our father's half of the house? We are being pressured to agree the Twenty-five thousand pounds comes out of our father's interest in the property.

9. Gift of Residue

I give my Residuary Estate to my partner PARTNER_NAME subject to her surviving me by 30 days unless she and I die in circumstances where it cannot be known which of us survived the other then this 30 days survival condition shall not apply but if this gift fails then the following provisions shall apply instead.

10. Money Bequest

I give to my partner's grandson GRANDSON_NAME free of all taxes the sum of Twenty-five thousand pounds subject to his surviving me and attaining 25 years of age and until such attainment, the income thereof shall be accumulated or applied wholly or in part by my Trustees in their absolute discretion from time to time for his maintenance education or benefit.

10. Further Gift of Residue

I give my Residuary Estate for such of my son SON_ONE_NAME and my son SON_TWO_NAME as shall survive me and if more than one in equal shares and if either of them shall fail to obtain a vested interest leaving issue who survive me then such issue shall take by substitution such failed share and if there shall be more than one of such issue they shall take in equal shares per stirpes but so that no issue shall take whose parent is alive and so capable of taking.

Depends what the rest of the will says. Did it say that you and your brother inherited half the house (assuming it was your father's to leave - i.e. was owned as tenants in common with his partner, as opposed to joint tenants).

Given that your father died 6 years ago, you might like to ask the executors why this has all taken so long to resolve. They are the ones who need to be dealing with it, not you and your brother.

Keep_pedalling

If the will did give you his half of the house, then I would check the current ownership with the land registry. Sign up for the alert service while you are there as well.

https://www.gov.uk/protect-land-property-from-fraud

TBagpuss

As I read it, the gift of further residue, to you and your brother,  and the gift to the grandson are both conditional on his partner having died before him or having died within 30 days of him.

So neither is effective.

If earlier in the will he left his share of the house to you and your brother then you get that, and then his partner can leave her part of the estate to her grandson if she wishes .

However if the half house is a reference to the 'gift of further residue' then you haven't inherited as it is subject to the same condition