Released on: July 30, 2008, 1:00 am

Press Release Author: sharpfirm.com.

Industry: Law

Press Release Summary: Wills are not always easy to probate. If families wish to contest a will, they have several routes to choose with the help of a qualified attorney.

Press Release Body: (AP) Wills usually contain instructions about what a person wants done with their estate when they die. This may be easier said than done depending on the clarity of the will, its validity and the person appointed as executor.




The most common reason for contesting a will is related to conflicts among remaining family members over who gets what. If the family disputes the contents of the will, they have no choice but to retain a qualified attorney familiar with the complexities of wills and estate law. Big or small, any estate can run into problems with asset disposition.




Contesting a will can happen two ways. The family may object to the person who was appointed as the will\'s executor or administrator. Perhaps they feel the person is not adequately qualified to serve in a responsible position such as executor. Or the person may have a felony record that would immediately disqualify them.




There is a distinction between challenging the actual will itself and challenging the executor of the will. When an objection is raised against the person chosen to be executor, this is not calling the contents of the will into question. These two issues are separate and are dealt with differently.




If the validity of the will is being called into question, the family is asking whether or not the will is the right one. There are two situations here to consider. The first is whether there is a newer will and the older one was revoked. The second situation deals with the mental capacity of the person who wrote the will.




Proving lack of capacity to write a will is difficult. Lack of capacity goes to the foundation of the writing of the will in that the person has to be mentally competent to write one. If they aren\'t judged competent the will is automatically invalidated.




Undue influence in writing a will runs a close second to mental capacity and often the two issues are seen together. Undue influence means the person didn\'t write the will of their own free choice. This happens when mental incapacity is present or if a person was under the influence of drugs etc.




The law says the person who wrote the will must have the intention to create a will, and that the written instructions are his. If it\'s proven a person was forced into writing something that didn\'t outline his express intentions, the will is invalid.




Don\'t risk trying to contest a will without legal counsel. The legal ins and outs are far too complex to take the chance of losing an inheritance. Consult with a qualified attorney.









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