Brown v Brown

In the matter of Brown v Brown, the deceased left his estate to his only biological child, excluding his stepson who sought a family provision order. The deceased and the plaintiff’s mother divorced over 30 years ago, and the plaintiff, the stepson, had not been in contact with the deceased since 2004. The plaintiff sought a family provision order from the estate, claiming he was in need of maintenance and support from the deceased’s estate. The deceased’s will provided that the whole estate would be left to his biological child, and the estate was not considered large.

The legal issues for the court to decide included whether the plaintiff, as a stepson, was eligible to be considered a “child” of the deceased for the purposes of making a family provision claim. The court also had to determine whether the factors present in the case warranted an order to be made in the plaintiff’s favour. The court considered the nature and extent of the relationship between the plaintiff and the deceased, the length of time the plaintiff had lived with the deceased, and the extent to which the plaintiff had contributed to the deceased’s estate during the marriage.

The court held that the plaintiff was not eligible to be considered a “child” of the deceased for the purposes of a family provision claim, as the marriage between the deceased and the plaintiff’s mother had ended over 30 years ago, and there had been no contact between the plaintiff and the deceased since 2004. The court also found that even if the plaintiff was eligible, the factors present in the case did not warrant an order to be made in his favour. The court noted the strong competing claim of the deceased’s biological child, and the fact that the estate was not considered large. Therefore, the court did not make a family provision order in the plaintiff’s favour.