How Do I Contest a Will in California?
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It appears that you seek to create a lien of some type on the property in issue. A quitclaim deed may not be recorded unless the owner signs the deed. A judgment lien is a lien for money owed which is created after a court judgment is awarded and remains unpaid. The usual way to stake a claim regarding real property whose heirship is disputed is through a claim on the estate during probate. It appears that one of the trust amendments you attached in emails contained a no contest clause, attempting to prevent any challenges to the validity of the will or trust by stating that anyone challenging it forfeits any benefits from it. Will contests challenge the admissibility of wills in probate courts. It is a kind of litigation that questions whether a will should be properly admitted by the court as evidence of a decedent's wishes regarding the distribution of his estate, appointment of guardians for minor children, or other issues dealing with the decedent's estate. One may not contest the validity of a will merely because that person does not like the will's provisions. A will's validity is not determined by one's sense of "fairness" of the will's contents. Nor is a will's validity determined by how reasonable the will's provisions appear nor on the timing of disbursements.
A will must be prepared and properly executed (signed and witnessed by a certain number of competent witnesses) while a person still has legal or testamentary capacity. A person must execute a will while he or she has full control over his or her mental functions. If a person waits until he or she suffers an accident or an illness, it could be too late. Testamentary capacity means the maker understands the nature of making a will has a general idea of what he/she possesses, and knows who are the members of the immediate family or other "natural objects of his/her bounty". Testamentary capacity requires freedom from delusion which is the effect of disease or weakness and which might influence the disposition of his property. Also, it requires ability at the time of execution of the alleged will to comprehend the nature of the act of making a will. A will is most likely to be challenged by someone claiming that the will was not properly written, signed or witnessed, or did not meet the state's formal requirements; the decedent lacked mental capacity at the time the will was executed; the decedent was a victim of fraud, force, or undue influence; or the will is a forgery. If a will contest is successful, the entire document may be thrown out. Alternatively, the probate court may reject only the part of the will that was challenged. If the entire will is disallowed, the court will distribute the decedent's property as if the person died without a will If possible, the court may use a previous will but such action will depend on state law and the facts and circumstances of the case. Will contests are not uncommon, but few people actually win one. They can be very expensive and create lengthy delays in the distribution of an estate's assets. A person must have legal "standing" to object to a will What constitutes standing is determined by state law, but generally it means someone who either is a party mentioned in a will or perhaps should have been a party to the will based on a legal relationship to the decedent.
Despite the feelings of a decedent's family or friends, a will is most likely to be challenged by someone claiming one of the following:
-the will was not properly written, signed or witnessed, or did not meet the state's formal requirements
-the decedent lacked mental capacity at the time the will was executed
-the decedent was a victim of fraud, force, or undue influence
-the will is a forgery
If a will contest is successful, the entire document may be thrown out. Alternatively, the probate court may reject only the part of the will that was challenged. If the entire will is disallowed, the court will distribute the decedent's property as if the person died without a will If possible, the court may use a previous will but such action will depend on state law and the facts and circumstances of the case.
If someone files an objection to your will or produces another will a "will contest" has begun. will contests are not uncommon, but few people actually win one. They can be very expensive and create lengthy delays in the distribution of an estate's assets. Not just anyone can contest a will A person must have legal "standing" to object to a will What constitutes standing is determined by state law, but generally it means someone who either is a party mentioned in a will or perhaps should have been a party to the will based on a legal relationship to the decedent. For example, if a decedent revises his will and the later will is less favorable to someone than an earlier will that person has standing. Someone may initiate a will contest to have a different person, bank, or trust company serve as the personal representative for an estate or serve as a trustee of trusts created by the will. Some of the most common challenges to wills come from potential heirs or beneficiaries who received less than they had anticipated.
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