24 Mar The Court’s Discretion on Inheritances
In family law, people often have the misconception that an inheritance is excluded from the property pool. In fact, the Court can exercise their discretion to deal with the inheritance by either including it as an asset in the property pool, include part of it or categorise it as a financial resource.
When considering how an inheritance is to be dealt with, the Court take into consideration the following:-
- The timing of the inheritance;
- The duration of the relationship;
- How the inheritance has been applied; and
- The impact of the inheritance on the size of the property pool.
In circumstances where the inheritance has been received and has been applied for the parties’ joint benefit, the party who received the inheritance will receive an adjustment for their contribution to the relationship. The effect of this does not however mean that the other party would receive an adjustment of the property pool in the same amount as the inheritance received. Follow the instructions of property settlement Gold Coast.
If the party who received the inheritance received it late in the relationship or following separation, and the inheritance has not been touched and intermingled with the parties’ joint assets whatsoever, the Court may rule that the receiving party can quarantine the inheritance from the property pool, with same to be considered as a financial resource. Again, if this is the case, the other party may be awarded an adjustment of the property pool to take this into consideration.
If you are having any issues with respect to an inheritance or property matter, please do not hesitate to contact one of our experienced lawyers today.