Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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133. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to update and amend the Succession Act 1965. [25473/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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A Law Reform Commission Report on the Prevention of Benefit from Homicide (LRC 114 - 2015) was published last year and my Department is currently preparing proposals for legislation to give effect to the Commission's recommendations for reform of the law in this area. The intention will be to ensure that persons convicted of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter will be precluded from taking any share in the property or other assets of their victim. While I am not in a position at this stage to announce when such legislation will be published, my intention is to proceed quickly with enactment of the legislation following its publication.

For the sake of completeness, I should add that the Law Reform Commission published a consultative paper on Section 117 of the Succession Act 1965 earlier this year and sought submissions on possible changes to the law in this area. Section 117 is the provision under which the child of a deceased parent who has made a will may apply to court on the basis that parent had failed in his or her “moral duty" to make proper provision for the child. Where the court finds that a parent had failed in his or her moral duty to make proper provision for the child, it can make an appropriate order which redistributes the estate between the beneficiaries. The Law Reform Commission's paper identified a number of issues which may need to be reconsidered at this stage, e.g. the matters to be taken into account by the court when determining whether the deceased had failed in his or her moral duty; and whether the provision in section 117 should be extended to situations in which the deceased parent had not made any will.

I understand that the closing date for receiving submissions on the consultation paper was 25 June and that the Commission is now embarking on completion of the project. I look forward to receiving the completed Report and considering any recommendations for reforms in this important area of succession law in due course.