Despite the best intentions of a person leaving their estate in a Will, sometimes there's a beneficiary who just doesn't like the deal they're getting. The unhappy person may have felt entitled to a larger share of the estate, or perhaps the individual was left out entirely (disinherited).
This can give rise to a challenge ("Will contest") by the disgruntled person to have the Will invalidated by the probate court. If you think only multi-million dollar estates are contested, think again. Many Will contests are litigated over very modest estates.
Who can contest a Will?
Under Minnesota law, there are only two categories of persons who have standing to contest a Will in court:
- Anyone named in the Will, including persons named as being disinherited.
- Any individual who would have been an heir if the decedent had died without a Will (intestate).
No one else can contest a Will. The Will contest must be filed within one year after the testator's death.
There are certain legitimate grounds for contesting a Will, given proof.
The most common grounds involve claims that:
- The testator lacked testamentary capacity when making the Will. The testator had diminished capacity or was not of sound mind at the time the Will was executed, did not appreciate the nature of his or her estate, and was unable to comprehend the full consequences of executing the Will.
- The Will was made by the testator while under undue influence or duress. This may include influence exerted by a person having a "confidential relationship" with the testator; a person of trust, such as a family member who convinced the testator to change the Will; a caregiver threatening to withhold care unless the testator agrees to modify the Will; or a person taking advantage of a testator with diminished capacity.
- The Will was made fraudulently. This may involve forged signatures, or inserted pages with altered terms.
- The Will does not comply with Minnesota law. The Will was improperly executed, with missing signatures or witness attestations, or dates that do not match up. Another example involves online DIY Wills, drafted by someone not fully understanding the nuances of estate planning law in Minnesota.
- A more recent Will has been discovered. Someone submits a Will purportedly executed by the testator on a date later than that of the Will being probated.
Will contests are often lengthy and expensive. A Will contest can drag on for months or perhaps years, and cases of an estate's assets being substantially depleted during the legal defense against a contest are not uncommon. Even if the personal representative of the estate ultimately prevails in court in defending the Will against the challenge, the damage is done. Time and money are gone, and there are no winners in such a situation.
Minimize the risk of a successful Will contest.
No Will is infallible, and there's no guarantee that someone won't contest it. Nevertheless, the probate court will try to do everything it can to uphold a Will if the document has been well-drafted and executed properly. A well-designed Will should be robust enough to give the probate court adequate guidance in following your wishes for the distribution of your assets. If your Will is crafted by a competent Minnesota estate planning attorney, you will have more confidence knowing that the document meets the legal requirements, is designed to reflect your wishes for your loved ones, and will help the court honor your true wishes.
Using some online DIY Will is a crapshoot. Why gamble with your
hard-earned estate assets and the future of your loved ones just to save a
little money on your estate plan?