Inheritance Hidden From Me By Family Members

Sea_Shell

I can see why you'd be upset and feel you want to try and pursue it further, to know exactly what happened and by whom, but for £5000 is it worth it?

To pursue this could quite quickly cost you a lot more than that, if you don't get an "easy win".   More likely the solicitors will defend their position, rigourously.

gwynlas

I think it would be very difficult to prove a case against the executor as they weren't to now that post would not be passed to you. I think it is your family who deceived you and the check was paid into your parents joint account as you say you have the same initial. A letter before action is a declaration that you will be seeking recompense through court a solicitor would probably put up a good defence why they should not pay. No harm in trying but don't get your hopes up.

Sea_Shell

gwynlas said:

I think it would be very difficult to prove a case against the executor as they weren't to now that post would not be passed to you. I think it is your family who deceived you and the check was paid into your parents joint account as you say you have the same initial. A letter before action is a declaration that you will be seeking recompense through court a solicitor would probably put up a good defence why they should not pay. No harm in trying but don't get your hopes up.

I agree.   The most likely scenario is that the cheque was cashed into an account with the "same" name.

Should the Solicitors have done more "due diligence" to ensure the cheque was personally handed to the right person, rather than just posted their last known address... Maybe?.   

As I can imagine these days one would have to produce ID to confirm they are the named beneficiary.

lincroft1710

One  of your biggest problems is that you do not know exactly what happened as you are being told different stories by different people. If a cheque was made out in your name and sent to your last known address at the time, then the solicitor/executor has probably done what was expected of him. He has not deprived you of your inheritance, a member or members of your family have. 


The other big problem is the passage of time combined with an apparently incomplete paper trail. You are in a bad position as potentially 4 people can contradict anything you allege and you have very little to back up your allegation

theoretica

Around 25 years ago I inherited £1000 from a great aunt.  The solicitor sent me a cheque, and a receipt to sign and return.  But of course the solicitor had nothing to compare my signature to.  So if the executor of this will did similarly and someone did cash your cheque and return a receipt then that someone would be the person who committed fraud against you and the executor.  Problem is you have more than one suspect and only very circumstantial evidence.  And getting access to all their bank account details from 20 years ago may not be possible.

Ratkin007

If not already done, perhaps a good starting point would be to get statements of your own account for the time period to see if money was deposited.  That way you can be more certain you did or did not receive the money and also establish how easy it is to get statements from 20+ years ago.

MovingForwards

Assuming this is England or Wales, statute of limitations is 12 years. 

The solicitor appears not to be carrying a balance on the client account for this estate, which means the cheque was cashed or proof was provided to say you had died before the other person and the money was distributed as the the will; two possible things off the top of my head.

Marcon

Sea_Shell said:

gwynlas said:

I think it would be very difficult to prove a case against the executor as they weren't to now that post would not be passed to you. I think it is your family who deceived you and the check was paid into your parents joint account as you say you have the same initial. A letter before action is a declaration that you will be seeking recompense through court a solicitor would probably put up a good defence why they should not pay. No harm in trying but don't get your hopes up.

I agree.   The most likely scenario is that the cheque was cashed into an account with the "same" name.

Should the Solicitors have done more "due diligence" to ensure the cheque was personally handed to the right person, rather than just posted their last known address... Maybe?.   

As I can imagine these days one would have to produce ID to confirm they are the named beneficiary.

Remember this was 20 years ago and the standards of the day were different. Provided the solicitor had no reason to believe there was anything untoward going on, and had good reason to believe sending a cheque payable to OP at the address shown in the will would ensure the beneficiary received his inheritance, it's difficult to see how any action against him as executor would succeed, since the fraud (if there was one) was committed by one or more family members.

The cheque could have been paid in anywhere, not just the local bank or building society, so simply obtaining bank statements for the relevant period and demonstrating that the cheque was not paid into OP's bank account isn't sufficient. 

By all means send a letter before action if it makes you feel (a bit) better, but remember the onus is on you to provide sufficient evidence to to show that on the balance of probabilities you were unlawfully deprived of your inheritance. That is going to be exceptionally difficult. All your family members need to do is chorus in unison that they knew you'd received the cheque and shed crocodile tears about your failure to remember and your attempt to put the blame on them.

Murdina

As others have said, the solicitor would not have been able to "close" accounts/administration of the estate unless all the money was paid out and cleared. More likely a cheque was intercepted and paid in.

I recently dealt with my late father's estate and it struck me how gobsmackingly easy it would be not to pay out to beneficiaries who were otherwise oblivious to the terms of the will. A solicitor of course would abide by the will but it is quite possible to administer an estate without one. I would advise anyone who remotely thinks they might be the beneficiary of a will but doesn't seem to have been contacted by the executors a year or so after the death to do a search of probate records. There is a small fee.

lincroft1710

Ratkin007 said:

If not already done, perhaps a good starting point would be to get statements of your own account for the time period to see if money was deposited.  That way you can be more certain you did or did not receive the money and also establish how easy it is to get statements from 20+ years ago.

I think how difficult would be more appropriate