Can a will be challenged in a judicial proceeding? This question interests many heirs. Especially those who are dissatisfied with the contents of the testament document. Often, property owners do not quite honestly distribute it among the heirs. Or even unfamiliar people appear among the recipients. Therefore, one should be aware of the possibility of challenging. What are the scenarios?
Is there a right?
Is it possible to challenge a will after the death of the testator? A moot point. On the one hand, the document takes effect after opening. And it reflects the will of the deceased. On the other hand, violations or dissatisfaction with the distribution of property lead to thoughts of contestation.
By law, citizens have this right. But not at all. Therefore, you should find out the details of this process. Is it possible to challenge a will after the death of the donor? Yes, but not always. And not everyone. What does the law say about this?
Who can challenge a will
The thing is that the will can be challenged. As already mentioned, not all citizens are capable of doing this. Only some are given that right. Who exactly?
Can a testament be challenged in court by third parties? Not. This is only possible with a power of attorney. In general, third parties do not have any right to file a claim with respect to testamentary documents. Is it possible to challenge the inheritance by testament? Yes! This is a common practice!
The heirs of the law are able to challenge the decision made by the donor. They most often turn to the courts. Indeed, with such inheritance, each recipient must take possession of a certain part of the property.
Also, probate heirs are entitled to challenge probate documents. These are not necessarily relatives. Any persons who have been mentioned by the testator acquire such a right. This should be noted.
For close testator
A very important document is a will. Is it possible to challenge it in court? Yes. From all the foregoing, it should be concluded: the process should be carried out on behalf of the citizens mentioned in the document. But there are exceptions.
The thing is that some categories of persons can challenge the document under study. Who is it? Among these people distinguish:
- spouses;
- parents
- children
- citizens who were dependent on the deceased.
All these people have every right to challenge the will in court. These categories of citizens are entitled to an obligatory share of the inheritance, but only on condition that their disability is recognized. In the absence of evidence of this provision, it is impossible to count on a share, if it was not mentioned in the will.
Nullity
What methods of recognition of the studied document can be distinguished? For example, heirs have every right to declare a will null and void. Such a document may be when it has no legal force. Is it possible to challenge a will after the death of the testator? Yes. The main thing is to decide what exactly is needed: to declare the document void or to challenge its content. These are two completely different cases. Nullity recognition can be realized if:
- there is no notarization on the will;
- the document does not comply with the requirements of the law;
- the paper was drawn up with third parties;
- several testaments appear in the document;
- There are no witnesses who observed the process of executing the will.
In all these cases, you should go to court. But it will only be necessary to get evidence in advance that will help recognize the will null and void. In fact, it is not as difficult as it seems.
Contesting Content
Is it possible to challenge a testament to an apartment or some other property? Yes, but only in certain cases can one hope for success. The thing is that the second option will lead to a challenge to the content of the document. This means that the will has legal force, but it will have to be proved in court by law. Pretty common. And you can challenge the content in the following cases:
- If there are no heirs in the will who have the right to an obligatory share, but in real life there are such.
- When there is a possibility of drafting a document under pressure or threats.
- If in doubt about the authenticity of the testator's signature at the end of the document.
- In case of mention in the will of property that the donor did not own.
- The paper was drawn up when the deceased was not able to soberly assess what was happening.
Incapacity
Is it possible to challenge a will in court? Yes, this is possible. Moreover, judicial practice very often encounters such cases. Heirs are often sued precisely because of testamentary documents.
If there is a possibility that a citizen was incompetent at the time of writing, you should go to court. The legacy of the testator is a good reason for declaring the document null and void. If it is possible to prove this, all the property of the testator will be divided among all the heirs according to the law and in the order established by the order.
Inadequacy
Is it possible to challenge a will at home after the death of a mother? Naturally! If a citizen is a child of the testator, he has the right to appeal to court. Most often, judicial practice is faced with situations in which the heirs try to prove the inadequacy of the deceased. In this case, the content of the document is disputed.
In fact, it is not so easy to invalidate a will because of the inadequate state of the applicant at the time of writing. Indeed, now many people are interested in advance how to draw up paper correctly, so it was almost impossible to challenge it. In order to exhaust the inadequacy of the donor, it is enough at the time of compilation of the document to submit a certificate from a psychiatrist. And then it will not be possible to challenge the will because the owner of the property was in an inadequate condition.
Action plan
What should citizens do if they want to invalidate the will made by the donor after his death? To do this is actually not as difficult as it seems. Especially if the former owner of the property was not too interested in how to draw up a document so that it could not be challenged in the future.
Plaintiffs will have to realize a few steps. Among them are:
- Drawing up a statement of claim.
- Collection of a package of documents.
- Search for evidence of your position.
- Appeal to the court with a statement.
- Participation in the hearing.
At the end of the judicial debate, on the basis of the documents and information studied, a decision will be made on the validity / invalidity of the will. The most difficult thing is to prove your position (especially when challenging the content). What can help in this business?
Expertise
Want to invalidate a will? Is it possible to challenge it? Yes, many have this opportunity. But you need to prove your position. In order to avoid any problems, it is necessary to conduct an independent examination of the testament document.
It is not only a study of the content of the paper, but also a medical report. After all, it is necessary to prove that the citizen was in an adequate / inadequate state when compiling the document. Only a medical examination will help here. But the authenticity of the signature and the correctness of the contents of the will are established in the course of a routine verification. The so-called independent examination.
All results issued to the plaintiffs will have to be kept in the original. And attach them to the will. This technique will give a chance of successfully challenging a will in court.
Witnesses
As evidence of their position, the plaintiffs have every right to the assistance of witnesses. The main rule is their disinterest in invalidating a will. Often it is the testimony of third parties that can affect the course of the case.
However, in practice, usually witnesses play the role of defenders of the will. They are contacted in order to establish the fact of the correct execution of the document. But if there are those who can help in proving invalidity, the plaintiffs are very lucky!
The timing
Is it possible to challenge the will of a house or apartment? Yes, but only a few limitations should be kept in mind. There are certain deadlines for plaintiffs to meet. Otherwise, the right to appeal to the court with their claims runs out.
It all depends on the situation. If the challenged will takes place, then the plaintiffs have only 12 months to appeal to the courts. The countdown starts from the moment the will is opened.
But when it comes to nullity, the time for judicial appeal is 3 times more. In this situation, you can appeal the testament document for 36 months. These terms will have to be considered. In fact, they play an important role. If you skip them, you can completely lose all opportunity to appeal to the judiciary.
Documents
So, now you should pay attention to the list of documents that will be required to appeal the will. An incomplete package of securities will not allow to consider the statement of claim. There is also the possibility that a lack of evidence will prevent the paper from being recognized as null and void. The list of documents is rather big. And basically it will depend on the reason for going to court. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare:
- statement of claim with a description of personal data and an indication of the reason for the appeal;
- will;
- documents that confirm kinship with the donor;
- identification;
- certificates confirming the psychological health of the testator;
- the results of the examination in a particular area (for example, on the recognition of a signature as invalid).
If there are witnesses, they should be mentioned in the statement of claim, as well as indicate contacts for communication with them. For example, addresses and phone numbers. Personal data should not be forgotten either.
Arbitrage practice
Can a will be challenged after the testator dies? Yes, only in this situation, citizens have such an opportunity. While the owner is alive, there can be no appeal about this. This should be noted.
What does judicial practice show? The process of contesting wills is a very long one. You should not hope for a quick solution to the problem. Is it possible to challenge a will after the death of the donor? The answer to this question is yes. Is a document always invalidated? There is no definite answer. It all depends on the situation.
In judicial practice, all cases of contestation are divided approximately in equal shares. That is, only in half of all lawsuits can a document be recognized as invalid. In the modern world, many try to insure the validity of a will in advance. For this, donors come up with a variety of ways to prove the correctness of the design of the document. For example, photo, video and audio recordings are made, as well as medical certificates attached to the will. In general, almost any testament document can be challenged. But for this you have to seriously try.