Succession Act 1965 section 109

Application of Part IX

Section 109 establishes when Part IX of the Succession Act 1965 applies, setting the scope for the provisions that protect the legal rights of a surviving spouse or civil partner and children to a share in a deceased person's estate.

• Part IX applies where a person dies after the commencement of the Act, having left a valid will (in whole or in part), and is survived by a spouse or civil partner, children, or both.
• References to the testator's estate mean all property to which the deceased was beneficially entitled, provided the interest does not cease on death.
• The estate is calculated after deducting all expenses, debts, and liabilities properly payable from it, but estate duty is excluded from those deductions.
• Part IX (sections 109 to 119) gives the surviving spouse or civil partner a legal right to a share in the estate and allows children to apply to the court for proper provision from the estate.