Sprowles v Bertoldo

The case of Sprowles v Bertoldo involves a dispute between a daughter and her deceased father, Bertoldo, concerning the distribution of the estate under the Family Provision Act 1982. The plaintiff, Sprowles, sought to make an application for provision from her father’s estate, claiming that she had been evicted from her father’s home shortly before his death. The court was required to determine whether the relationship between the plaintiff and the deceased warranted any provision from the estate, despite the strained relationship evidenced by the eviction.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the plaintiff's application for provision from the estate should be granted, considering the strained relationship between her and her father. The court needed to assess the nature of their relationship and whether it was sufficient to warrant a provision, despite the eviction that occurred just before the deceased's death. The court also had to consider if the circumstances surrounding the eviction constituted a matter of principle that would affect the outcome of the application.

The court concluded that the relationship between the plaintiff and the deceased, while strained, was not so poor as to be a matter of principle that would preclude the grant of a provision. The court found that the plaintiff had a legitimate expectation of support from her father, despite the eviction, and that the deceased’s estate was sufficiently large to make a provision without depriving the other beneficiaries of their rightful shares. As a result, the court made an order for provision in favour of the plaintiff. The amount of the provision was left to be determined in further proceedings.