Siblings Win £460,000 Inheritance Battle Over Father’s Hidden Love Children

In a dramatic court ruling, three legitimate children of market porter Michael Gymer have won a £460,000 inheritance dispute against their father’s secret love children.

The case, which unfolded after Gymer’s death in 2020, centers on the late revelation that Gymer had led a double life, secretly fathering two children—Joseph, 29, and Charlotte, 32—while married to Julie Gymer for decades.

Michael Gymer died six months after his wife, Julie, passed away in 2020. Together, the couple had three children—Shelley, 62, Gregory, 64, and Lee, 54.

However, the siblings were shocked to learn only months before their father’s death that Gymer had been in a long-term affair with Beverley Madden, which resulted in two children whom they had no idea existed.

Despite their mother’s share of the estate, including her own funds, being divided equally among the five siblings, Gregory and Lee took legal action.

They argued that splitting the £461,752 estate evenly was unfair, as their father had inherited his wife’s share upon her death.

This meant that the inheritance was, in their view, unfairly divided among the children of Gymer’s extramarital affair, effectively including their mother’s money.

The court ruled in favor of Gregory and Lee, granting them an additional £170,000, while Joseph and Charlotte received a much smaller share.

The judge emphasized that the five siblings were all innocent victims of Gymer’s secretive actions, with none of them aware of the affair until after their mother’s death.

It was determined that Gregory and Lee’s pressing financial needs justified a larger portion of their mother’s share, which amounted to around £143,000 each. The other three siblings will receive just £58,000 each.

This case highlights the complexities of inheritance disputes when long-held family secrets are revealed posthumously.

Despite claims from the half-siblings that their mother might have known about the affair, the judge concluded there was insufficient evidence to suggest that Julie Gymer had been aware of her husband’s secret life.

In the end, the court’s decision provided a bitter victory for the siblings who fought to protect their inheritance from their father’s hidden past.