DEEDS OF VARIATION AND DISCLAIMERS
A person may inherit from an estate under the terms of a Will or the rules of
succession following an intestacy. The person may not wish to receive the inheritance
for a variety of reasons and it is possible to vary the disposition.
EXAMPLE
Joe Soap died leaving £50,000 to his son Jim. Jim is 65 years old and does not need any
money to maintain or improve his standard of living. He owns his house and has savings and
a pension. In fact, the gift would create an issue regarding Inheritance Tax and would result in
a larger estate after Jim has died resulting in more tax being paid. Jim’s daughter Beth has
three teenage children and money is tight.
Jim decides that he doesn’t want to receive the £50,000 and that he wants Beth to receive it
instead.
OPTIONS FOR JIM
1. Jim can disclaim the gift. This means that the £50,000 falls back into his father’s estate
and passes to either a substitute named beneficiary or into the residuary estate and
then passes to the residuary beneficiary. In this case it would pass to Jim’s brother
Pete.
2. Jim can make a Deed of Variation. This means that his father’s Will is re-written in
relation to the gift to Jim and is re-directed to Beth. The rest of the Will stays the same.
EXAMPLE
Tom and Sally are a married couple and own their house as joint tenants. This means that
when one party dies, the legal title passes automatically to the surviving party and forms part
of their estate in relation to the assessment of resources to pay for care and for Inheritance
Tax. Tom and Sally kept meaning to visit the solicitor to re-arrange the ownership so that they
hold the title as tenants in common in equal shares. This means that when one party dies, the
share passes into the estate and in accordance with the terms of the Will. Tom and Sally
wanted to leave their half to their daughter Jennifer who has never married and stayed at
home to look after them.
Tom and Sally didn’t get round to going to the solicitor and Sally died as a result of an
accident. Tom is very upset because they really wanted Jennifer to have Sally’s half but the
legal arrangements hadn’t been put into place.
ACTIONS FOR TOM
Tom can sever the joint tenancy with retrospective effect meaning that it is deemed that he
and Sally each owned half of the house as at the date of Sally’s death, this still means that
Tom inherits Sally’s share because she left everything to him in her Will. Therefore Tom
should make a Deed of Variation resulting in Jennifer inheriting her mother’s half share and
providing her with security.
TIME LIMITS
In order to be valid for the purposes of inheritance Tax, the variation must be made within two
years of the date of death and must be made in a particular manner.
NOTE
The appropriate advice will depend on the circumstances of each individual case.
This is a basic introduction to disclaimers and variations following a death and we are pleased
to offer further advice and guidance to meet your circumstances.
29 .1 .14
Contact details for Wills & Probate Department:Naomi Pinder
Solicitor - Head of Department
John Bradfield-Kay
Solicitor
 [email protected]
 [email protected]
Bianca Moran
Personal Assistant to Naomi Pinder
 [email protected]