Estate Law
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Answered in 5 hours by:
8/1/2015
Phillips Esq., Attorney-at-Law
Category: Estate Law
Satisfied Customers: 28,157
Experience: B.A.; M.B.A.; J.D.
VerifiedHello: This is PhillipsEsq. I am a licensed Attorney and I will be assisting you today.
If I take this to court, would I be able to see what's in the will(s)?
Response 1: You are not entitled to see your father's Will since he is still alive. However, you are entitled to see you mother's Will since she has passed because you are one of the legal heirs to the estate even if she disinherited you. You have a right to see the Will. So, the Court would order your sister to provide you with a copy of her Will.
The costs can eat up our inheritance. If I file papers to go to court and my sister changes her mind to avoid that, then what? Do I tell the judge "Nevermind"? How do I undo filing court papers?
Response 2: You can give notice to the Court that you are voluntarily withdrawing the case.
Once I get copies of the wills, a lawyer will have to go over them to make sure my Mom has not gotten my sisters to conspire against me by paying them off with a larger portion of my parent's estate.
What are my legal options to make sure my dad's will has not been altered by him (through pressure from mom) or by any addition my mom might have made to the wills before she died? If my sister refuses to let me see the will till after dad dies, it seems like it will be too late to do anything and they can always argue "why did I wait this long?"
Response 3: You are not entitled to a copy of your father's Will UNTIL he has passed, regrettably.
Please give me some advice. I have no "family" lawyer to turn to and the only record of who the lawyer is who drew up the wills is on the will itself, which I can't see. Thanks.
Response 4: I cannot give you legal advice because it is prohibited by terms of service. I provide general legal information, which I have done in my responses above.
If I take this to court, would I be able to see what's in the will(s)?
Response 1: You are not entitled to see your father's Will since he is still alive. However, you are entitled to see you mother's Will since she has passed because you are one of the legal heirs to the estate even if she disinherited you. You have a right to see the Will. So, the Court would order your sister to provide you with a copy of her Will.
The costs can eat up our inheritance. If I file papers to go to court and my sister changes her mind to avoid that, then what? Do I tell the judge "Nevermind"? How do I undo filing court papers?
Response 2: You can give notice to the Court that you are voluntarily withdrawing the case.
Once I get copies of the wills, a lawyer will have to go over them to make sure my Mom has not gotten my sisters to conspire against me by paying them off with a larger portion of my parent's estate.
What are my legal options to make sure my dad's will has not been altered by him (through pressure from mom) or by any addition my mom might have made to the wills before she died? If my sister refuses to let me see the will till after dad dies, it seems like it will be too late to do anything and they can always argue "why did I wait this long?"
Response 3: You are not entitled to a copy of your father's Will UNTIL he has passed, regrettably.
Please give me some advice. I have no "family" lawyer to turn to and the only record of who the lawyer is who drew up the wills is on the will itself, which I can't see. Thanks.
Response 4: I cannot give you legal advice because it is prohibited by terms of service. I provide general legal information, which I have done in my responses above.
Continuing the same subject:
1. What if I find out my second sister knows what's on my dad's will? Is that considered okay because she has power of attorney when my first sister is not present? Does that make it ok for her to see the will? The POA only refers to his medical care as far as I've been able to see. They say I don't have POA, but I'm the only one who has ever taken him to the hospital during emergencies.
Response 1: As a POA, the sibling is in charge of your father's affairs and in her capacity as POA, she can see the contents of the Will, but has no duty to reveal the contents to anyone else.
2. If, after my dad passes, can I contest this in court if I, somehow, find out the estate has not been split evenly? (How I don't know.) I have audio and video recordings, and the witness, as proof of my dad's answers on the subject. BTW, when asked, we did not lead him on about what answer we wanted to hear. We just asked and he supplied the details.
Response 2: If you have concrete proof that your father was under duress when he made his Last Will and you were disadvantaged, you can contest the Will. This is done when the Will is submitted for Probate. If you do not know how to do it, then you would have to retain the services of a local Attorney who handles probate litigation to assist you. You have to be careful not to spend all your inheritance in contesting the Will--in Court costs.
You can use the following sites to find local probate litigation Attorneys:
http://www.lawyers.com
http://www.justia.com
http://www.findlaw.com
3. Someone suggested we have a family get together with a lawyer or at least a mediator to discuss this, preferably before my dad passes so he can agree or disagree with their actions. For example have my sister swear that no changes were made and everything is being split evenly. Would that help? It seems a good thing to try before jumping into court. But how do I know she's telling the truth? It seems I REALLY need my dad there to say what he wants, not rely on my mad mom's temper.
Response 3: Your sister's swearing to the contents of the Will is irrelevant because what controls is the actual Will. If she is lying that would not be used to find the Will invalid. Because of your father's medical condition, it is too late to involve your father in determining what his intentions are and what his Will says and to change the Will to reflect his wishes. He no longer has legal capacity to do so. You would have to wait until he passes to see what is in the Will if your sister still refuses to give you a copy as she has no legal obligation to do so BEFORE your father passes. Also, even if she gives you a copy and you find that your father had been influenced by your mother to cut you off or reduce your share, there is NOTHING you can do about it because a Will is NOT EFFECTIVE UNTIL the passing of the Testator. So, you cannot lodge a Will contest at this time.
4. However, if they cannot prove his house, car, property, sale of his profitable business, and many expensive art works have been summed up into one estate value which will then be split evenly, then that makes it look like they are hiding something and court seems inevitable. Am I right?
Thank you.
Response 4: I have no idea what you are talking about. So, I cannot answer your question. But see my previous responses.
1. What if I find out my second sister knows what's on my dad's will? Is that considered okay because she has power of attorney when my first sister is not present? Does that make it ok for her to see the will? The POA only refers to his medical care as far as I've been able to see. They say I don't have POA, but I'm the only one who has ever taken him to the hospital during emergencies.
Response 1: As a POA, the sibling is in charge of your father's affairs and in her capacity as POA, she can see the contents of the Will, but has no duty to reveal the contents to anyone else.
2. If, after my dad passes, can I contest this in court if I, somehow, find out the estate has not been split evenly? (How I don't know.) I have audio and video recordings, and the witness, as proof of my dad's answers on the subject. BTW, when asked, we did not lead him on about what answer we wanted to hear. We just asked and he supplied the details.
Response 2: If you have concrete proof that your father was under duress when he made his Last Will and you were disadvantaged, you can contest the Will. This is done when the Will is submitted for Probate. If you do not know how to do it, then you would have to retain the services of a local Attorney who handles probate litigation to assist you. You have to be careful not to spend all your inheritance in contesting the Will--in Court costs.
You can use the following sites to find local probate litigation Attorneys:
http://www.lawyers.com
http://www.justia.com
http://www.findlaw.com
3. Someone suggested we have a family get together with a lawyer or at least a mediator to discuss this, preferably before my dad passes so he can agree or disagree with their actions. For example have my sister swear that no changes were made and everything is being split evenly. Would that help? It seems a good thing to try before jumping into court. But how do I know she's telling the truth? It seems I REALLY need my dad there to say what he wants, not rely on my mad mom's temper.
Response 3: Your sister's swearing to the contents of the Will is irrelevant because what controls is the actual Will. If she is lying that would not be used to find the Will invalid. Because of your father's medical condition, it is too late to involve your father in determining what his intentions are and what his Will says and to change the Will to reflect his wishes. He no longer has legal capacity to do so. You would have to wait until he passes to see what is in the Will if your sister still refuses to give you a copy as she has no legal obligation to do so BEFORE your father passes. Also, even if she gives you a copy and you find that your father had been influenced by your mother to cut you off or reduce your share, there is NOTHING you can do about it because a Will is NOT EFFECTIVE UNTIL the passing of the Testator. So, you cannot lodge a Will contest at this time.
4. However, if they cannot prove his house, car, property, sale of his profitable business, and many expensive art works have been summed up into one estate value which will then be split evenly, then that makes it look like they are hiding something and court seems inevitable. Am I right?
Thank you.
Response 4: I have no idea what you are talking about. So, I cannot answer your question. But see my previous responses.
Phillips Esq., Attorney-at-Law
Category: Estate Law
Satisfied Customers: 28,157
Experience: B.A.; M.B.A.; J.D.
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