WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU’RE LEFT OUT OF THE WILL?

A lot of people wonder what happens if they are left out of a will.

I don’t like to fluff up my blogs with unecessary information. So the short answer is this: If you are left out of the will, 99% of the time you’re out of luck.

It’s usually as simple as that. A properly executed will is presumed by law to be valid and the burden of disproving the validity is on the person contesting it.

There are a few ways a will can be invalidated:

• A lack of compliance with will formalities
• Revocation by the testator
• A lack of testamentary capacity of the testator
• Undue influence, fraud, duress, coercion, or mistake

Undue influence consists of (1) an unnatural disposition has been made (2) by a person susceptible to undue influence to the advantage of someone (3) who had an opportunity to exercise undue influence and (4) who in fact has used that opportunity to procure the contested disposition through the improper means of undue influence.

So unless someone held a gun to the head of the will writer (testator), or exhibited undue influence, meaning they took advantage of the testator, then you won’t have a good chance at contesting the will.

There is another way to contest a will called “Quantun Meruit.” This is a theory in law that prevents “unjust enrichment.”

What does that mean exactly?

It means that if you took care of an elderly person for example and you expected to be paid but never were, the estate may owe you money for your services. You can bring that issue to probate and demand money. However, the burden is on you to show that you are owed money and that there was a reasonable expectation to be paid.

You can also bring contractual claims against the estate. You can say we had a contract to pay me X amount of dollars and I was never paid.

But if your case is lacking any of the aboved mentioned claims then… being left out of a will is an uphill battle that you probably won’t win.

If you need help with a will email or call me at [email protected] or 207 550 5604