Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Texas
grown step children not raised by deceased dad contesting will
iwill try and make it brief. thank you in advance for your time.my fathers wife passed,my father moved in with me, after probate of wifes will, dad and i , i had poa , sold his home when he moved in with me, dad had new will drawn up, my father was in first stage alzheimers, he suffered a stroke year later, then died here at home with us, he waas 75. when he drew will, he was of sound mind and knew what he wanted and didnt want.now, soon as grown daughter of his last wife found out he died, she submitted old will to court, i submitted dads last will. she now is taking me to court saying all types of lies and really ugly things .she wants to have control of his estate, i dont see how this could happen, being that she was grown when my dad married her mom and he changed hes will upon her moms death, also, she has her own father. how can this happen
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: grown step children not raised by deceased dad contesting will
I'm sorry to hear of your loss. As for your issue, I'm speculating that the adult daughter will have eighter to prove that either (1) you used undue influence to persuade your father into making a new will or (2) your father didn't know what he was doing when he made the second will. Both of these are difficult to establish without concrete proof. With respect to your quesiton about the will, there is no requirement that one leave property to a family member in most circumstances.
Re: grown step children not raised by deceased dad contesting will
Previous response is generally correct; however, the circumstances of the most recent will (father's ongoing Alzheimers, advanced age, living with you, closeness of execution to death) could put you in a vulnerable position. How strong are the witnesses to the most recent will that he was of sound mind? Are they disinterested? Who is administering the estate presently? Did last wife bring any assets into the marriage? You should obtain an attorney who is strong in litigating will contests. It obviously depends on the strength of your particular facts but a lot of times it is better to settle because of the attorneys fees that will be incurred and, of course, the risk of losing.
Re: grown step children not raised by deceased dad contesting will
It's amazing what people will do if they think there's money involved. You'll need a lawyer that is familiar with wills contests, which can frequently get very expensive. The woman is obviously trying to prove that the later will is invalid.
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