Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

How did you get the decedent to agree? Did you hold a seance?

I would assume the decedent died after the November meeting.

Is there any written agreement signed by everyone concerned?

Also, 55, 15 and 25 equals 95%. Who was to receive the remaining 5%? Is that person agreeing to forego their inheritance?

Is the estate worth more than $150,000 and that is why you will be filing probate?

To answer your question, if everyone agrees in writing, the distribution can be different that what the will states. The issue is whether the person taking less has to file a disclaimer with the court.

If the beneficiaries agree, it's easy enough to pull off - since it's a holographic will, there's not likely to be a spendthrift clause and that means the three beneficiaries can sign an assignment to straighten out their interests in the estate. This raises some gift tax issues, but unless the estate is very valuable then that's not going to be a real issue.