Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

I'm sorry for your loss.

The answer will depend upon the documents themselves. Presumably your father appropriately designated his beneficiaries of his life insurance policy in the way that he wanted the benefits to be paid. Courts are typically unwilling to change those without very good reasons such as abuse, etc.

Here the question would arise as to what would be the basis of his wife's lawsuit? Merely not liking who your father designated as beneficiaries is not going to be sufficient.

Let me know if you want to set up a consultation to review documentation and discuss your options.

Caleb

I am sorry to hear of your father's passing and now to add to your problem, his wife's intentions against his wishes.

Here is a major question that needs to be answered...how did he set up the beneficiaries? Was it a separate document that she signed or was it with the holders of the life insurance policy?

If he named specific people with his policy, then they will pass outside of Probate and she has no claim. If he did not, then there may be Court intervention required. Because she signed it, you will have a claim under contract law, but a Court will most likely need to be the final determinate of the issue because the holders of the policy generally deposit the money with the Court and then step out.

I hope this explains at least a little bit. I relly need to have some more information about what your father actually did.

If you would like to discuss this matter further in a more private forum, please feel free to contact me directly at the email address provided by LawGuru or through our firm�s website located at PasadenaEstatePlanning.com

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