Making Sure No One Can Contest a Will with a Skilled Probate Lawyer
May 13, 2021
When people are at the sunset of their lives, they often plan for the time when they will pass on and leave their loved ones a legacy. This legacy often comes in the form of a will, which indicates how their estate should be handled after they are gone. The problem is that sometimes people get greedy or feel that they deserve more, and thus they contest the will in hopes of receiving more money.
Another
reason to contest a will
is that the author of the will changed the document beforehand but neglected to inform anyone. Often, the original beneficiaries still hope to claim the inheritance by claiming that their copy of the will is the legal one. However, having a skilled probate lawyer can scuttle this attempt before it even begins, as Paul Premack describes in a recent article from MySA.com:
Consulting a probate lawyer should be something that anyone interested in writing a will or creating a trust fund should go for. They help jump through the legal hoops and hurdles that often spring up, especially when a lot of money is involved.  (Source: How to name different beneficiaries for your estate, MySA.com, December 24, 2013)
“Peoples’ lives change. Under Texas law, there are several actions you can take to eliminate the first will. First, when your attorney makes your new (second) will with you, it must recite that all prior wills and codicils are revoked by this new will. Second, you should physically destroy the original of the first will. Do so in the presence of two credible witnesses and your attorney; people willing to testify that you destroyed it in their presence with intent to revoke it.”The attorney would then be able to stop any contesting of the new will by the original beneficiary. This is just one of the ways a probate lawyer can stop the contesting of a will. Skilled probate lawyers like David Munson and others would be also be able to help advise you on any special circumstances of the will. Some examples would be directives regarding continued pet care and others of the sort. Those stories of millionaires leaving their cat millions do happen in real life, though the real situations are a lot less funny and often need legal help to untangle.
Consulting a probate lawyer should be something that anyone interested in writing a will or creating a trust fund should go for. They help jump through the legal hoops and hurdles that often spring up, especially when a lot of money is involved.  (Source: How to name different beneficiaries for your estate, MySA.com, December 24, 2013)
If an executor is not fulfilling their duties properly, the estate could deteriorate both physically and financially. In this blog post, we will explore the consequences of an executor’s failure to act in the best interest of the estate and the importance of hiring an estate defense attorney to protect the estate’s value and ensure the executor’s actions are held accountable.
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If you find yourself accused in a fiduciary litigation case, it’s crucial to know the steps to take to protect your interests. This blog post outlines what to do if you’re facing serious allegations and provides insights into defending yourself effectively in fiduciary matters. Learn more about the process and how a fiduciary litigation attorney can help.
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