Anyone crafting an estate plan has a vital stake and interest in limiting the possibility of future conflicts over the validity of the documents created. Understanding the laws that enable someone to start a validity claim case is the first step.
One of the most common reasons to initiate a will or trust contest in Massachusetts is due to a claim of undue influence. Undue influence is typically described as circumstances or facts that could destroy what is known as free agency.
Free agency means that the person who is crafting any estate planning document has the free will to do so and will develop these documents based on their own decisions. In order to show undue influence, someone contesting a will or trust in Massachusetts must show that an unnatural disposition of a document has been created due to the influence of someone else who alleges that the creator of the document would not have otherwise made this decision.
A caregiver or a loved one who has a sudden influence in the document creator’s life and directs that document creator to pass the majority or all of his or her assets to this caregiver or family member could become a strong case when other family members stood to inherit under previous versions of the will. To take what steps you can to prevent undue influence claims and other types of will contests, identify an experienced Massachusetts estate planning attorney to help you.
