If you have already had a chance to look at the West Palm Beach will and know that there is some foul play afoot, the next step is going to be to file a will contest. Do you know how long you have in West Palm Beach to file the will contest? The statute of limitations is very short for filing a will contest, how short is it?
Statutes of Limitations
- Do you know what a statute of limitations is?
- These are the time limits for filing a lawsuit in West Palm Beach.
- Different law suits have different limitations periods.
- For example while you may have years to file a claim for breach of contract you will only have a matter of months for certain probate lawsuits.
- What are the limitations periods you need to worry about for a will contest?
Will Contest in West Palm Beach
- Unfortunately in Florida the limitations period is rather short for filing a will contest.
- It does not matter if you plan on contesting based on lack of testamentary intent, duress or even undue influence.
- The limitations period is only ninety days.
- The interesting part is when the timer starts ticking.
- You may have assumed that it starts upon the decedent’s death but that is a common mistake.
- In reality the limitations period of ninety days starts when you are served with a notice of administration.
- Do you know what a notice of administration is?
- This notice from the West Palm Beach probate court that the estate is to be administered pursuant to a certain will or no will at all.
- What happens if you file a will contest past the deadline?
- The other side can ask the Court to dismiss your probate lawsuit as a result of filing too late.
How to Handle a Statute of Limitations
- The easiest way to avoid any problems with the statute of limitations is to retain an experienced Palm Beach probate law firm to handle the matter.
- Probate litigators know that the Florida courts do not reward those that sleep on their rights.
- It is possible to move quickly to file a lawsuit if you know what you are doing and have the appropriate forms and experts available.