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Probate Litigation: Reasons to Contest a Will

Category: News

Discovering that a will may not be valid adds an unfortunate layer of additional stress to the news of a loved one’s passing. A Fort Myers will contest lawyer can help you examine whether or not you have reasons to contest a will under Florida law.

We understand you may be experiencing the difficulty of grief, but if you have concerns about a will, please reach out immediately. There are time limits with respect to when you can file claims to contest a will and once they pass, your lawyer can’t do much to help you.

Generally, there are four main reasons why you might need to contest a will. All of them relate to the inability of the deceased to have made binding documents, devises or instruments that satisfy Florida estate law. Some reasons concern the deceased’s abilities, while other reasons concern people who may have done the deceased wrong by manipulating them in one way or another.

Testamentary capacity - This is a standard of capacity that means the deceased had mental abilities to make a valid will that meets the standards set forth under Florida law.

The deceased is required to be of sound mind during the process of making his or her will. The sound-mind standard is not as high as other means of or reasons for determining capacity. For instance, your loved one may have suffered from mental illness or showed an age-related decline in mental abilities — but this does not mean the deceased didn’t meet a standard of sound mind.

In order to contest a will on grounds of testamentary capacity, your will contest lawyer must show that the deceased did not understand the nature of his or her property, did not understand the relationship with his or her heirs or did not understand the practical effect of the will.

Undue influence - This situation arises when a beneficiary has used the influence of a friendship or other close relationship to manipulate the deceased into making a will that he or she wouldn’t have normally created.

While it may seem like someone suddenly developed or intensified a relationship with your loved one, Florida estate law requires more than that to contest a will. The beneficiary must have taken an active role in procuring the will — influencing discussions, suggesting outcomes, attending sensitive meetings or similar behavior.

Fraud - If someone defrauded the deceased into signing a will that was different than what he or she intended to create, then the will is invalid.

Fraud occurs in two main ways. Either the deceased signed something that was different than what he or she thought or the deceased created a different device than he or she would have because someone intentionally misled them.

Duress - While duress is rare, the sinister nature of it demands justice for your loved one. Duress is when someone threatened or otherwise coerced the deceased into creating a will with certain provisions.

If any of these situations sound like what happened to you or your deceased loved one in Fort Myers or elsewhere in Florida, a will contest lawyer at Freidin & Inglis may be able to help.