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Author Topic: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.  (Read 1622 times)

Offline Flattybasher9

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The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« on: Friday 05 April 19 11:28 BST (UK) »
We see from the Harry Bennett thread, than Reuben Kitson Mitchell changed his name after his mother married Henry Bennett. His actual father was declared to be Reuben Kitson junior, on the 21st January 1916 at the Sheriff Court in Glasgow.
Now we know that he (Reuben) was illigitimate, but his father was known and now legally declared by name in court, and recorded as said in the Register of Corrected Entries.
My question now relates to inheritance.
Since the father was named and declared in court, did/would the child have any inheritance rights?

Malky

Offline josey

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #1 on: Friday 05 April 19 11:34 BST (UK) »
Did he actually inherit anything? Do you have his father's will? Did Reuben jnr contest the will?

The earlier thread for interest:
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=810909.0
Seeking: RC baptism Philip Murray Feb ish 1814 ? nr Chatham Kent.
IRE: Kik DRAY[EA], PURCELL, WHITE: Mea LYNCH: Tip MURRAY, SHEEDY: Wem ALLEN, ENGLISHBY; Dub PENROSE: Lim DUNN[E], FRAWLEY, WILLIAMS.
87th Regiment RIF: MURRAY
ENG; Marylebone HAYTER, TROU[W]SDALE, WILLIAMS,DUNEVAN Con HAMPTON, TREMELLING Wry CLEGG, HOLLAND, HORSEFIELD Coventry McGINTY
CAN; Halifax & Pictou: HOLLAND, WHITE, WILLIAMSON

Offline Flattybasher9

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #2 on: Friday 05 April 19 11:42 BST (UK) »
I have no idea. I was just wondering if he would have had any rights considering the legality in respect to the declaration of the father's identity.

Malky

Offline josey

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #3 on: Friday 05 April 19 11:44 BST (UK) »
OK I see. It is an interesting point & possibly Scottish law is/was different from English/Welsh. I presume 'inheritance rights' would only come into play if the deceased died intestate or the will was contested.
Seeking: RC baptism Philip Murray Feb ish 1814 ? nr Chatham Kent.
IRE: Kik DRAY[EA], PURCELL, WHITE: Mea LYNCH: Tip MURRAY, SHEEDY: Wem ALLEN, ENGLISHBY; Dub PENROSE: Lim DUNN[E], FRAWLEY, WILLIAMS.
87th Regiment RIF: MURRAY
ENG; Marylebone HAYTER, TROU[W]SDALE, WILLIAMS,DUNEVAN Con HAMPTON, TREMELLING Wry CLEGG, HOLLAND, HORSEFIELD Coventry McGINTY
CAN; Halifax & Pictou: HOLLAND, WHITE, WILLIAMSON

Offline Forfarian

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #4 on: Friday 05 April 19 12:26 BST (UK) »
As I understand it, an illegitimate child was legitimised by the subsequent marriage of the parents, if and only if the parents would have been free to marry when the child was conceived; but an illegitimate child whose parents did not marry at all had no inheritance rights until the law was changed in the late-ish 20th century. But I am not a lawyer.

A parent of an illegitimate child could of course leave a legacy to that child in his or her will, even if the child was never legitimised. I have come across more than one will in which the testator left a legacy to 'my reputed daughter so-and-so'.

Never trust anything you find online (especially submitted trees and transcriptions on Ancestry, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and other commercial web sites) unless it's an image of an original document - and even then be wary because errors can and do occur.

Offline RJ_Paton

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #5 on: Friday 05 April 19 16:37 BST (UK) »
Quote from: josey on Friday 05 April 19 11:44 BST (UK)
OK I see. It is an interesting point & possibly Scottish law is/was different from English/Welsh. I presume 'inheritance rights' would only come into play if the deceased died intestate or the will was contested.

Scots Law is possibly quite different in this area to English Law - Under Scots Law the surviving spouse and children have legal rights to a proportion of the moveable estate (ie anything except land or property built on land)  of the Deceased regardless of any instructions in a will/Testament.
Roughly speaking the surviving spouse would be entitiled to claim a third of the moveable estate and the children (or their descendants) could claim another third. - if there were no children the surviving spouse could claim half.

Offline Forfarian

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #6 on: Friday 05 April 19 20:33 BST (UK) »
Quote from: josey on Friday 05 April 19 11:44 BST (UK)
possibly Scottish law is/was different from English/Welsh.
There's no 'possibly' about it - Scots Law is different from English Law.

Quote
I presume 'inheritance rights' would only come into play if the deceased died intestate or the will was contested.
If an estate is not bequeathed in accordance with the rules on inheritance, then the will can be set aside. One third of the moveable estate goes to the surviving spouse and a further third is divided among the children.
Never trust anything you find online (especially submitted trees and transcriptions on Ancestry, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and other commercial web sites) unless it's an image of an original document - and even then be wary because errors can and do occur.

Offline Flattybasher9

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #7 on: Saturday 06 April 19 07:39 BST (UK) »
I think that we are at slight cross purposes here. My question related directly to the legality of inheritance rights post Sheriff Court declaration regarding the father's identity.
My uncle's lineage came down through one of the Leith's of Leith Hall, according to the birth register.
(4th great grandfather of my uncle.) This is recorded in the birth register, but not verified/declared in any Sheriff Court. It seems that there were several "illigitimate" children, fathered by the "Leith Hall boys", but none had inheritance rights. If any had been declared, would that have made a difference?

Malky

Offline chempat

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Re: The Harry Bennett post and illigitimate children.
« Reply #8 on: Saturday 06 April 19 07:59 BST (UK) »
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