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How can I keep my sisters from sharing my inheritance? West Palm Beach Will Contests!

Uncategorized Oct 13, 2015
post about How can I keep my sisters from sharing my inheritance? West Palm Beach Will Contests!

Are you upset because you were disinherited from your father’s will in  West Palm Beach? Are you absolutely shocked that your sisters are sharing your inheritance? The story may not be over and you may be able to contest the will in West Palm Beach probate court. Do you know how to file a complaint?

Contesting the Will

  • There are a few reasons why you may contest a will in West Palm Beach.
  • The bigger question is what does this probate lawsuit do?
  • When someone dies with assets in West Palm Beach the courts require an estate to be opened.
  • The estate is then probated and the assets are eventually distributed.
  • This is all done through the personal representative of the estate interacting with the probate court.
  • So what does a will contest do?
  • The will contest halts the probate process because it challenges the person’s will’s admission to probate.
  • This is crucial if you plan to collect an inheritance from the estate but you were left out of the will.
  • Experienced Palm Beach probate litigators know that there is a limited amount of time to fill a will contest. 
  • Sometimes if there has already been a notice of administration you may have as little as 90 days.
  • Is the timer already ticking for your rights to a will contest?
  • What grounds do you have to file a will contest?

Lack of Testamentary Capacity

  • You may be able to claim that your loved one lacked the capacity to execute the will.
  • This can be common in cases where someone signed a will towards the end of their life.
  • Also if there is a history of mental illness be alert for this.

Undue Influence

  • You are going to want to look out for others who have influenced your loved one, perhaps inappropriately.
  • The will should reflect what your loved one wanted, not what the caretaker wanted.
  • How can you tell if there has been undue influence?

Fraud

  • Fraud is something you can usually know when you see even though you cannot easily define it.
  • If you suspect that someone deceived a loved one into executing a will this is fraud.
  • Did they know that is what they were signing?
  • If not this may be fraud and you may be able to set aside the will and keep it out of the West Palm Beach probate court.