Item ALL/11/219a - Draft letter from Herbert Allingham to Ted [Crombe]

From: Shelly, Hadleigh, Suffolk. Signed.
'A man divorces his wife. Before the decree is made absolute she has a child (his child). Has this child any legal claim on his estate?
If he died intestate would the child inherit or benefit in any way from the estate?
If you can answer this without too much trouble it will help me in a story I am writing.'

Red ink annotations in response to the questions, signed by [E.C.]:
'Is it his? See other sheet.
Certainly if his child. There is no divorce a vinculo until the Decree Absolute has been pronounced. The Decree Nisi is a Decree unless the parties come together again as in the view of the Church and State they should do so.
It would be quite possible for a child to be conceived just before divorce proceedings were started and if they moved very quickly (most unlikely) for the woman to be delivered of a child after the Decree Absolute which would be held [?] the child of the offended husband.' etc.