What can we do if my infirm father of 80 met and married a 77 year old woman 8 months ago and changed his Will to leave everything to her?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What can we do if my infirm father of 80 met and married a 77 year old woman 8 months ago and changed his Will to leave everything to her?
After only 4 months of marriage he changed his Will. His mind is sometimes not good. He now has pancreatic cancer and has 1 to 2 months to live. Do we as his three girls have any chance of protesting his Will because we do not think he knew what he was doing when he changed it?
Asked on December 31, 2015 under Estate Planning, Texas
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
Sorry to hear of your father's illness.
You have grounds for contesting the Will based on undue influence (from his new wife) and lack of testamentary capacity (mental competency) if your father did not know what he was doing when he changed the Will.
There may be additional grounds for challenging the Will if it was not properly executed. The Will has to be signed by your father in the presence of two disinterested witnesses who also signed. If he did not have a new Will, but just amended his Will, the amendment (codocil) would require that he acknowledge his signature in the presence of two disinterested witnesses.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.