Mostly, when a person dies, they leave a will behind to ensure their belongings are well-distributed to their beneficiaries. A will is a legal document that contains details of the wishes and plans of a person’s belongings when they pass away. The document is created and prepared by a testator who passes it to the executor to oversee the distribution process. Beneficiaries get the testator’s property from the executor. In this article, we focus on everything revolving around wills and when to involve the best will dispute lawyers.
What must a will have?
There are certain criteria to meet for a will to be considered legitimate and enforceable. For instance, the testator should have the testamentary ability and must be 18 and above years. The date and signature should be included in the will where the testator must place their signature. What’s more, the document must read “Last will” or else it will be considered as any other document.
Since the will comes with instructions dictating how the property and assets of the testator should be distributed, it should contain vital information. This information includes:
- A description of the property and estate of the deceased
- When and how the property and assets should be distributed
- The names of every beneficiary and what they will inherit
Disputes around the will often arise when a beneficiary sees that they don’t get what they are entitled to. As such, the beneficiary can seek help from will dispute lawyers. Also, disputes can arise when the instructions on the will are unclear or use vague language. In other words, a will dispute is when a beneficiary challenges any of the provisions of the document.
What will dispute lawyers do?
When a testator dies, their will is submitted in court to undergo the probate process. Probate is a term generally applied when discussing issues concerning estate distribution. It refers to several legal actions that govern the process of distributing an estate. Therefore, before consulting will dispute lawyers, the will should be presented to the court.
From the court, the case is taken to will dispute lawyers. The lawyers work on it and try to restore balance to the will for the benefit of everyone. A will dispute lawyer finds the proof for your claims and helps you get what is rightfully yours. The first step when the case gets to the lawyer is to determine its strength.
Grounds for disputing a will
You can dispute a will based on certain grounds. These include:
- If you believe the asset or property received from the distribution of the will is not what you are entitled to.
- If there are uncertainties regarding the location of the testator’s death.
- If an heir dies during the probate process.
- If the testator’s property is not included or accounted for in the will
- If the heir passes on before the testator.
- If the items to be distributed are physically unavailable when the testator dies.
Involving will dispute lawyers helps streamline these cases and resolve things before escalating further.
How to resolve and prevent will disputes
When resolving will dispute informally, communication between the parties involved is essential. In case communication and compromise don’t resolve the dispute, the case is usually taken and resolved by the probate process in court. At this time, involving will dispute lawyers is essential to provide the best advice during the process. The probate judge will, however, apply appropriate state law to abide by the testator’s wishes relating to their distribution of the estate.
Matters regarding wills and estate are complex. During the time of distribution, a lot of emotions go into the process. However, having will dispute lawyers is essential to avoid these matters from escalating.