Unfortunately, there are situations in which a family member or other interested party does not agree with the terms of a will, guardianship, or power of attorney. Nicolosi & Associates has built a reputation for providing strong, effective advocacy to help individuals and families end disputes as quickly as possible.
To formally dispute these actions, the parties will file an action to contest the document with the court. This can quickly turn into a bitter dispute that can drag on for years and can be emotionally tolling. When you are involved such a situation, there are various things you should be aware of.
Will contests generally revolve around a contention that the will in question does not reflect the actual wishes of the person that has passed away. To prove this, parties may claim the will was signed under duress or fraud, that the decedent was not of sound mind and memory at the time of the signing, or that the legal requirements to execute a will were not properly followed. It is important to understand the permissible grounds for contesting a will. A family member or interested party contesting a will cannot succeed simply because they are unhappy with their gift or because they were expecting to receive something more. There must be a recognized legal ground for the contest in order to succeed.
However, a family member or interested party can file an action to contest the appointment of the executor named in the will if they believe that person is not qualified to hold the position. Contesting the validity of a power of attorney is similar to contesting a will in that the challenge must be based on a recognized legal principle. Generally, a contest to a power of attorney will challenge the validity of the document itself or the choice of agent.
Guardianships may also be contested. This generally occurs early on in the process when a petition for guardianship is first filed to obtain a guardianship over a permanently incapacitated adult or child, or someone that has been disabled since birth. A contest can challenge the choice of guardian or the granting of the guardianship altogether. In the first situation, family members or other interested parties may not agree as to who the best person is to handle the financial affairs and medical decisions for a person.
In the second situation, the contester may feel that a guardianship is not necessary because there are alternative methods, such as powers of attorney for health care and property, which are available to accomplish some of the same goals as a guardianship. Or, the challenge may be based on the fact that the party is not legally incapacitated to the point necessary to require a guardianship. These contests are different from a will or power of attorney contest because the challenge is not to a legal document executed by the person of whom it was meant to protect, but it is a challenge to another person’s attempt to obtain control over the financial and medical decisions of an incapacitated person.
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