Estates of Deceased Persons (Forfeiture Rule and Law of Succession) Act 2011

The Estates of Deceased Persons (Forfeiture Rule and Law of Succession) Act 2011 has been passed into law, although it does not come into force until such day as the Secretary of State appoints (section 4).

Forfeiture is a rule of public policy that prevents someone from acquiring a benefit under the will or intestacy of another whom he has unlawfully killed.  The rule is relieved to an extent by the Forfeiture Act 1982.

The 2011 Act clarifies how the rule operates, as well as clarifiying the operation of disclaimers and the operation of the statutory trusts.

• Section 1 of the Act deals with Re DWS [2001] Ch 568 and Re Scott [1975] 1 WLR 1260, providing that after a forfeiture or disclaimer, the killer or person disclaiming is treated for the purposes of the rules relating to intestacy as having died immediately before the deceased.
• Section 2 applies the same treatment in the case of a will.
• Section 3 deals with a child of an intestate who survives the deceased but dies before attaining the age of 18 or marrying (or forming a civil partnership) under that age, leaving issue.  Such a person falls through the cracks under the existing law but after the Act comes into force, the child will be treated as having died immediately before the intestate, so that his or her issue will be within the statutory trusts (section 47 Administration of Estates Act 1925).