From a family law perspective, there are many issues that may arise with this cunning plan.

Divorce is not to be undertaken lightly. Although the court fee of £593 may seem paltry compared to the possible savings on inheritance tax, the emotional cost of divorcing your wife to marry her mother is likely to be extensive. Even if your wife is happy with the plan, the confusion for any children involved and the attitude from friends and family might mean the plan is too unattractive, to put it mildly.

There are a few other factors that should be taken into account.  The divorce process can take up to nine months to obtain the final order of divorce and then there is the waiting time for the mother-in-law (now spouse) to die if the plan is to succeed.  There is of course no guarantee that the mother-in-law would die first, or that her estate would be worth the wait. The plan might all be in vain.

Divorce can have significant financial implications regarding how assets are divided. If your needs are met by remarrying and being rehoused, that might not result in an equal division of assets.

Divorce can affect the occupation of a home, or entitlement to pension benefits, and should not be seen as offering financial fixes.  Anyone intending to embark upon this cunning plan should consider what he would be giving up with a divorce.

Anyone simply completing a divorce without addressing the financial issues that come with it needs to be aware of the remarriage trap.  Those who remarry before making their financial application on divorce, forfeit the right to make such financial claims.  That in itself might make any remarriage plan financially unviable.

Assuming that the cunning plan works out, and upon mother-in-law’s death, the estate is passed to the new spouse tax-free, that simply leads to another problem – his asset base/estate is now even larger than at the outset of this plan – even more perhaps to be taxed in the future or maybe even for the new wife to take on their divorce.

Maybe, instead of taking drastic action such as marrying your mother-in-law, the gentleman in the article should have sought expert legal advice. For further advice on inheritance tax or estate planning, wills and advice on divorce, contact our specialist teams.  We can offer a first free appointment in which you can discuss your concerns.

You can read the Daily Mail article here.

Author: Angela Moores, family law solicitor