The day my stepfather passed away from brain cancer, he changed his trust and left everything to my sister. Do I have someone to turn to?
My adoptive father died from inoperable brain cancer. He has three daughters from a previous marriage and two stepdaughters, my sister and I. He told me that my mother would have to live in the house he owned until she died, at which point his proceeds would be divided between our five daughters and stepdaughter.
Two years before my stepfather passed away, I had a falling out with my sister, and she began manipulating my mother to make her the executor of the trust.
A year after my stepfather passed away, I received legal documents from one of my half-sisters stating that she had hired an attorney. I think the very day my stepfather died of brain cancer, he cut out all three of her stepdaughters and signed a trust deed leaving everything to my sister. My sister witnessed this unnotarized document in person. My stepsister later realized how expensive and time consuming it was and stopped her lawsuit.
I was denied a copy of the family trust. My mother’s lawyer said I should be the beneficiary. My mother and sister excluded me as a beneficiary when they forged my stepfather’s signature. Is there anything else other than hiring a lawyer?
Will karma get them in the end?
Stepsisters, Sisters and Daughters
Related: ‘I feel ignored’: My husband and I are in our 70s. We got married 3 years ago. He is leaving his $1.8 million home to his 10-year-old relative. Is that normal?
“Generally, a will or trust can be challenged for reasons such as lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence by family members, or improper execution.”
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Dear stepsister,
If your mother is still alive, you may have to rely on karma. Karma must rely on karma to right wrongs. Even if your mother inherits everything, including the house that her stepfather previously revealed he planned to split between her three children and two stepchildren, your mother will still be able to share it with her according to his wishes. property can be divided.
That said, the timing and circumstances would be bad in any court. Typically, a will or trust can be challenged on the grounds of lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence by family members, or improper execution. Considering the nature of my stepfather’s illness, what happened seems highly inappropriate. In some cases, a trust may need to be notarized.
Benazeer “Benny” Roshan, partner and chairman of Greenberg Glusker’s Trust and Probate Litigation Group, says the facts described here are certainly troubling, but unfortunately not uncommon. “End-of-life changes to estate plans are inherently suspect. This is especially true if it involves reversing disposition provisions of a previous estate plan, such as beneficiary designations,” she says.
“Most jurisdictions have laws that allow heirs or beneficiaries to object to subsequent changes or amendments (described in an appendix to the letter) that remove their beneficial interest in a will or trust,” she adds. no see. “The legal process of formally contesting an estate plan is commonly known as a trust or will ‘contest.’”
Legal action is expensive. “Individuals who lose a beneficial interest in their estate due to an end-of-life change should consult with an attorney and investigate the cost-benefit of taking formal action,” says Roshan. “It’s important to note that most jurisdictions have time limits for taking action., If you think about it, time may be of the essence.”
complex legal issues
Daniel McKenzie, an attorney with the McKenzie Law Firm in Centennial, Colo., said there’s no telling whether karma will end up getting anyone. Equally, he said the only way to resolve your concerns is through an agreement between the parties involved or a court order. “Can I do this without a lawyer?” he says “Sure. “But that would be a terrible idea.”
Laws vary from state to state and McKenzie’s The analysis is based on California law, but most states share similar laws regarding estate planning challenges. He also does not address the part about the lack of notarization in your letter. This is because notarizing a trust or trust modifications is a common best practice for allowing trusts, although it is not always a formal requirement. It’s been recorded.
McKenzie believes you have a case based on how difficult it is for someone in the final stages of brain cancer to sign documents, let alone understand what they are doing. But your question was whether you need a lawyer. “Unfortunately, this is a very complex issue that requires sophisticated expert testimony and nuanced legal arguments,” he says.
“Assuming the mother also passed away and the assets passed to her sister outside of probate, the author would likely file a civil suit alleging lack of capacity and undue influence,” he added. “The fact that he executed the document too late when Dad was in a very critical condition would support both claims.”
This reader recently wrote to me about a similar situation. His uncle persuaded his ailing grandmother to exclude everyone else from his family trust. Readers likened it to a bitter Shakespearean tragedy. As his story shows, such an 11th-hour event is not unprecedented. When you have a sick relative and a lot of money is involved, people do dramatic and ill-judged things.
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