From ‘jacket’ to jackpot
Non-biological children can live large if named in ‘father’s will
Published:Monday | June 23, 2025 | 12:05 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
If a man in his last ‘will and testament’ names a child that he was deceived into believing he had fathered, based on the law, that child cannot be forced to provide proof or be prevented from getting the benefits left behind.
Speaking at a recent sensitisation session for justices of the peace in St James, which was hosted by the Ministry of Justice, Oliver Morris, customer service officer at the Administrator General’s Department, said a will is a man’s voice after death and the law will uphold it, no matter how anyone else feels, as the law respects the will above everything else.
“If you die leaving a will and you say, ‘my spouse Mary Brown gets this Mercedes Benz car,’ and Mary Brown is just a girlfriend, the statements contained in the will are upheld by the Wills Act,” explained Morris. “Similarly, in the case of a child, where the father is the deceased, if in his will, he says, ‘my son, David Doe’, even if he is not his son as we know, then the statements contained in the will is that he acknowledged this person as his son. So, there is no need for proof.”
EFFECTIVE AFTER DEATH
According to Morris, once the testator (the person who made the will) dies, the will becomes legally effective immediately.
“Where there is a will, the testator must die for it to be effective. Otherwise, it’s just a piece of paper,” said Morris.
In explaining the importance of making a will, Morris said that, without a will, things could become complicated, as, whereas a child listed in a will is not required to provide proof of paternity, in the absence of a will, proof will have to be provided if there is a challenge.
“If there is no will, then David Doe (the presumed son in the above scenario) will have to do a proof of paternity under the Status of Children Act. This person will now have to go before the court to prove that he or she is a lawful child of the deceased, and that further exacerbates the process,” explained Morris.
Morris also outlined other situations that could spark a challenge to a will, such as the state of mind of the testator when the will was made.
“If a person has a mental illness, they can’t make a will. The testator must be free and not moved by fear, fraud or flattery. You should not threaten or coerce the person to give you something in their will,” said Morris.
During the sensitisation session, justices of the peace were urged to assist persons who are desirous of making a will to do so. However, they were warned not to interfere in any decision-making.
“Anytime you are called on, you are just the scribe. Your job is to write what the person says, not to influence them,” said Morris.
The fight over so-called ‘dead lef’ (assets left behind by persons), especially in cases where no wills were made, has been the source of many bitter family feuds here in Jamaica. In some instances, it has to extreme violence.