Effect of the tontine rule under the EU rule
We are Britons resident in France. We bought a French house with a tontine and then we bought another after we had entered into a French marriage contract. We each set up a will in the UK but have not done so in France. With the new regulation, how does the tontine or the contract affect inheritance?
Notaire François Trémosa answers:
I am assuming you have children and that, as you do not mention any complications, they are common to you both.
If so, the arrangements you have are valid and correspond to your situation. Using the EU regulation will not be necessary as your marriage contract will protect you efficiently.
The regulation is more useful for couples whose children have a different father or mother [eg. because the marriage contract effectively disinherits children of the deceased who are not common to the marriage, and who may seek to contest it].
If, however, you actually want to opt for English law so as to modify the effect of these, be aware that, under French law, a tontine clause and a marriage contract will always apply first.
This means that if, say, you want to change the way you will share out the properties, you will have not only to opt for English law but also to modify the tontine and contract.
