What if you need to disinherit?

I want to disinherit a child in my will. Can I do that in Ohio?

There are times when, for whatever reason, a relationship with a child has deteriorated so far that you do not want them to take under your will. In Ohio, it’s not enough to say “and that child will get nothing” under the will. To make sure that your will isn’t challenged on that provision, you’re going to have to be a little more specific.

The law in Ohio is that “a testator cannot, by any words of exclusion used in his will, disinherit one of his lawful heirs, in respect to property not disposed of by his will.” Crane v. Exrs. of Doty, 1 Ohio St. 279 (1853), syllabus. “[T]he heir at law can be disinherited only by a devise of the property to another.” Mathews v. Krisher, 59 Ohio St. 562, 574, 53 N.E. 52 (1899).

In English, this means that if the property was specifically provided to another, such as to a trust or to another person, then the child is disinherited. If it was a pour-over will, i.e. one that puts all of an estate’s assets in trust, then the child is likely disinherited.

If the will didn’t COMPLETELY allocate all of the assets of the estate, then the child is still entitled to whatever assets were not specifically allocated to a person or entity.

This assumes that the will was executed correctly. If it was not, then the bequests are invalid, and the property passes from ordinary descent and distribution, and the child would be entitled to take under the estate.

This article is meant to be utilized as a general guideline for understanding automatic renewal provisions. Nothing in this blog is intended to create an attorney-client relationship or to provide legal advice on which you should rely without talking to your own retained attorney first. If you have questions about your particular legal situation, you should contact a legal professional.

Nick Weiss is available at 216-282-7263, or nick@npweisslaw.com. See more articles at npweisslaw.com.