Will Void Because Deceased is Racist Despite Absence of Racism in Will
Update - this decision has been overturned on appeal.
A recent Ontario Superior Court decision set aside an otherwise valid will as "contrary to public policy" on the sole basis that it determined one of the deceased's daughters was disinherited solely on racist grounds.
According to the evidence, the deceased had a good relationship with his daughter "V" until 2002 when she announced she was pregnant and that the baby's father was Caucasian. The deceased then ended the relationship with V. In 2010, the deceased made a new will, disinheriting V and leaving everything to his daughter who resided in the United Kingdom with whom he had little, if any, contact and to her two children.
Nothing on the face of the will gave any indication that V might have been disinherited because her children were "of mixed race." Despite this, in relying on extrinsic evidence, the court found the will "contrary to public policy" and "offen[sive] to human sensibilities". The will was set aside and both daughters will inherit under the laws of intestacy.
This decision, if left unchallenged by appeal, creates an opening for any potential beneficiary to argue that existing wills should be void because the deceased disinherited, or reduced potential inheritance, to the beneficiary on grounds that are contrary to public policy. Disinherited beneficiaries could blame any number of enumerated grounds, i.e. religion, sexual orientation, etc. as grounds for setting aside a will. The decision is a significant shift from that previous standard that a bequest should not be void absent a testamentary document that is manifestly contrary to the public interest.
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