Contesting a will

One of the few guarantees for people living in the Dallas/Fort Worth area is that they will pass away at some point in time. When people do pass away they leave behind everything that they had while they are living. They cannot bring their money and possessions with them. One common way that people can ensure their property goes to the people they wish to receive it, is by having a valid will at the time of their death.

There are times when family members may feel that the will was not the true wishes of the deceased though. Maybe they expected a larger inheritance or the people who were awarded property do not seem like the people the deceased would have provided for in the will. They may want to challenge the will in order to ensure it is a true and valid will.

Reasons to challenge a will

There are different ways that people can challenge a will, but some of the common ways are:

• The will was not executed properly. There needs to be witnesses who sign the will stating that they saw the person sign the will and there are other requirements as well. If these are not satisfied, the will could be invalid.
• The testator did not have the capacity to sign the will. People need to be in a state of mind that allows them to understand what the will states and understand the gifts that they are making through the will.
• Others put undue influence on the testator. People could pressure the testator through threats or other means to force them to give them certain gifts.
• The signature was obtained through fraud. This could be the testator was told the document they were signing was something other than a will or the signature could be forged.

If beneficiaries or potential beneficiaries of a will in Texas believe that a will is invalid, they can challenge it through the probate process. This can be a complicated process though and consulting with experienced attorneys could be beneficial.