Chapter 2 Commorientes

Question 0

Why is this a problem

Answer 0

Sometimes in wills you need to know who died first to determine if a beneficiary succeeds to an estate or not

Question 1

What is commorientes

Answer 1

When two or more people die and it is impossible to determine in which order they dies.

Question 2

Eg

Answer 2

A leaves everything to b
B leaves everything to c
If A survives b, then everything goes to A’s next of kin via intestacy. The gift to fails.

But if B survives A then all of A’s estate will go to B and then when B dies to C

Question 3

So what happens with commorientes.

Formerly

Answer 3

Law set down via rules and assumptions.
Formerly it was assumed the younger survived the older. But inequitable.
Whether a’s property went to a’s next of Kin or c would have depended on if a was older then b.
If a older the died before b then goes to b then c
If b older, gift to b fails and next of kin of a gets it

Question 4

Simultaneous Death Act 1958

Eg with previous example

Answer 4

Each to have survived the other.
For a’s estate
A survives B - NOK get a’s via intestacy
B’s estate
B survives A - gets B’s (where A may not even know C)