Were you (up until a few days ago) a beneficiary of a trust in West Palm Beach? Did the grantor / settlor disinherit you even though they are suffering from dementia or Alzheimers? You may be able to set aside that trust amendment but it is going to require you to file a probate lawsuit. Check out this recent case out of the Appeals Court in Connecticut to learn more.
Challenging Capacity
- Just because someone has Alzheimer’s or other dementia related mental conditions does not mean they do not have the ability to amend their estate plan, will or trust in West Palm Beach.
- Do you know what that means?
- Your goal is not to prove to the probate court that the person has a mental condition.
- You actually have to show a general lack of capacity at that time of the execution.
- Think about how much more difficult that is.
- Do you have that evidence?
- How are you going to present it to the West Palm Beach probate judge?
- These may sound like far out concerns but if you have a relative governing your trust think about the different ways you could get cut out.
- This is a real risk.
- The probate court may find that the person had the mental capacity to do what they did, check out this recent case to learn more.
Kunz v. Sylvain
- This was a probate appeal from Connecticut.
- The daughter of the trust settlor brought an action against her two brothers who were beneficiaries after there was an amendment to the trust removing her as a beneficiary.
- The settlor had already been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease by the time that the amendment was executed.
- Sounds like a slam dunk for the daughter right?
- Think again, probate lawsuits are rarely that clear.
- In fact she lost!
- The probate court found that based on the evidence the settlor had the capacity to execute the amendment she had made.
- The daughter was just out of luck.
Want to learn more about this case about Connecticut Probate and challenging trust amendments?
Check out the entire case by clicking here.
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