The tangled story of inheritance and the family of the late French film star, Alain Delon, has lessons far beyond France. In the first of three guest articles, the authors examine the details and the implications.

This is the first in a series of three articles considering the potential claims that could arise from the death of French film star, Alain Delon, had he been domiciled in England and Wales, so that HNW individuals and their advisors can learn how to react, should they encounter a similar situation. The first two of these articles will consider claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 by adult children and non-married partners respectively, while the final article focuses on claims brought to invalidate a will.

The authors of this article are Samara Dutton, partner, and Harry O’Donohue, trainee solicitor, Collyer Bristow. The editors are pleased to share these insights, and invite readers to jump into the conversation. Email tom.burroughes@wealthbriefing.com

Samara Dutton


Harry O’Donohue

Challenges to wills, especially adult children disputing a parent’s will, have increased significantly in England and Wales in recent years. Statistics from the Ministry of Justice published at the end of 2023 showed a 34 per cent increase in the number of wills being contested compared with 2018.

Seemingly, the main cause of this trend is the ever-growing number of blended families in the UK, which 2021 figures suggest now constitute around a third of all families. Disputes between second or subsequent spouses/partners and the children of the first marriage/relationship are the most common subset of this general increase in estate litigation. 

Alain Delon demonstrates that this trend is by no means unique to the UK. Delon tragically passed away on 18 August 2024 at his estate in Douchy, Centre-Val de Loire, France, where he had been living out the remainder of his days following a downturn in health suffered as the result of a stroke in 2019. Sadly, his final years were far from peaceful, owing to the intense media coverage of his children’s numerous quarrels over their father’s mental condition and the division of his estate.

Probably the most dramatic dispute amongst the children involved Delon’s two sons, Anthony, 60, and Alain-Fabien, 30, joining forces to allege, with the help of a secret recording, that Delon’s daughter, Anouchka, 33, had been attempting to coerce their father into bequeathing her a larger portion of his estate than the sons were to receive. She had also (allegedly) attempted to convince the frail Delon to move to Switzerland, where he could receive a higher quality of medical treatment and, (coincidentally), pay less inheritance tax.  

Whilst it is reported that Delon’s children have now come to terms with the division of his estate under his Will – which bequeaths a quarter each to his sons and half to his daughter – given the previous hostilities between the children, it would be premature to rule out the possibility of further disputes.

Children contesting a will under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (the ‘1975 Act’) 
Section 1 of the 1975 Act lists the specific categories of individuals who can apply to the court under its terms. This list includes children of the deceased. If a child has been written out of a parent’s will, or even if they are named as a beneficiary under it but believe that they are receiving too little, they will have automatic standing to bring a claim. 

The key question that must then be determined by the court is whether the will makes reasonable financial provision for the maintenance of that child. In coming to its conclusion, the court will assess the level of maintenance afforded, if any, to the applicant under the will and compares this with the level of maintenance reasonably required by the specific applicant, taking into account a range of relevant factors such as age, disability and financial health, but also encompassing any other matter the court may consider relevant. The court also considers the size of the estate as a whole and the needs of its other beneficiaries.

In carrying out such assessments, the courts have an extremely wide discretion and, whilst they are directed to give equal weight to all factors in their deliberations, they will inevitably vary their focus if the specific details of the case warrant it. Inherently, therefore, claims under the 1975 Act are unpredictable and both sides to the dispute should be cautioned accordingly. 

It is important to remember that while the 1975 Act provides an important counterbalance to the otherwise supreme principle of testamentary freedom in England and Wales, its original purpose was less about arming rejected family members with a right of recourse than it was about protecting the state from having to fund them. It is an essential part of a child’s claim under the Act therefore that they “need” additional provision for their maintenance.   

Where an adult child beneficiary of a will is already adjudged to be receiving reasonable financial provision under the will, or does not require additional funding for their maintenance, their claim will be unsuccessful. Should either of Delon’s two sons have brought a similar claim in English law relating to the respective quarters they received of their father’s reported estate of over €2 million ($2.15 million), it is almost inconceivable that the court would have ruled that they were not already being afforded reasonable financial provision.

It is not possible under the French forced heirship rules, but even if, hypothetically, they had been cut out of their father’s estate altogether, they may have struggled to succeed under the 1975 Act. This is because there is a general reluctance on the court’s part to permit the 1975 Act to become a medium for enriching already affluent adult children who ought to be able to provide for themselves. The courts have tended to find against such applicants and remain unpersuaded in the face of their entitlement.      

Comment
Aggrieved adult children set to receive an unequally small share of an estate, or indeed none at all, have automatic standing under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 to bring a claim for reasonable financial provision.

Whilst it is possible for such class of claimants to bring successful claims, the courts tend to look upon them unfavourably unless they are justifiably financially dependent upon the deceased whose will they are seeking to contest.

Given the wide discretion the court has, prospective claimants themselves should be advised to carefully consider their own need for financial provision from the deceased's estate before bringing a costly claim with no guarantee of success.