Hand v George

Hand v George

[2017] EWHC 533 (Ch) · High Court (Chancery Division)

What happened: Two adopted adults challenged their exclusion from a share of a family trust created by an old will. The dispute arose within their adoptive family and concerned how older inheritance rules treated adopted grandchildren. They asked the court to recognise their entitlement rather than exclude them because they were adopted.

What the court decided: Their claim succeeded. The court read the relevant rule governing older arrangements in a way compatible with the rights to family life and freedom from discrimination under Articles 8 and 14. That allowed the adopted grandchildren to inherit under the trust in this case.

Why it matters to adoptees: Being legally part of an adoptive family has not always meant equal treatment under every inheritance rule. This case records adopted people successfully challenging a concrete disadvantage attached to their status. Its practical relevance depends on the wording of the will or trust, the relevant dates and the rights of others involved. It does not reopen every past inheritance decision, override every express exclusion, or decide inheritance rights in an adoptee's original family.

Limitations: The result depended on the will, the timing of entitlement and the competing property rights. It does not reopen every historic inheritance or override every express exclusion.