In many cases where a child is disinherited, the reason is the negative event that took place between the child and the parent. Maybe they simply don’t have a very good relationship and don’t communicate often. Perhaps they had a complete falling out and aren’t even on speaking terms anymore. The relationship has broken down, and this negative event is why the parent wants to disinherit the child.
But are there any positive reasons to do this? Do any parents decide to disinherit a child that they are on completely good terms with?
No financial need
One example of a positive reason to disinherit someone is when they simply don’t have any need for the financial assets that you would leave them. This can free money up to go to those who actually would need it. There is no obligation for everything to be equal and a parent may even think that it is more “fair” if it is unequal.
For instance, perhaps you have a child who has been very financially successful and earns millions of dollars per year. You also have a child who has not been that successful and struggles to hold down a job.
If you’re leaving $200,000 as an inheritance, it may not make a difference at all to the child who is making millions every year, and they would just set the money aside and forget about it. But that could be life-changing money for the other child, who may use it to do something important, like buying a house or even starting their own business and securing a positive financial future.
All of this is possible through estate planning, but you just need to know about the legal steps to take.
