PROBATE WARS & WILL LAWSUITS: 5 THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE YOU START A PROBATE LAWSUIT

Not happy with what the will says? Maybe your mom or your dad died, and left a will which disposes of their estate. Maybe you didn’t get anything. No inheritance for you. Or maybe you got a lot less than you expected. Perhaps, you’re simply jealous that your brother or sister got more than you did.

Thinking of suing your brother or sister? Thinking of objecting to the will? Considering getting involved in the probate administration process?

Before you begin a will lawsuit, let alone a probate war, that is before you begin a probate lawsuit, involving an estate, a will, or trust, consider these five important points:

1. Kiss your family relationship goodbye. If you’re going to contest a will, if you’re going to take a legal and a financial position against your brother or sister, over what your mom or dad’s will says, or doesn’t say, think twice. First think about what type of family relationship you have with your brother or sister or whoever you are suing: because that’s what you’re doing. You’re starting a probate lawsuit, and an estate lawsuit. I know your lawyer is using gentle, fancy words like “petition”, or “complaint”, but let’s call it what it is: your suing your brother or sister, you’re engaging in a lawsuit. No one likes lawsuits. And your sister or brother won’t like the fact that your suing them. Two, realize that no matter what type of relationship you had with your brother or sister, your probate lawsuit is going to be viewed by them as a probate war. Your estate lawsuit is not going to help your relationship, it’s going to ruin it. Irrevocably, most probably. If the personal relationship, the family relationship, the affection or love, that you and your brother or sister share is worth anything, rethink your probate lawsuit. Otherwise, you can kiss your family relationship goodbye.
2. Do you have the financial resources to invest in probate litigation? Few lawyers like to talk about money or dollars, but the truth is that probate litigators are expensive. Probate litigation is expensive. You need to understand what it will cost to finance your journey into the probate litigation world. Do you have an estimate of legal fees, costs, and expenses from your probate lawyer? Do you know what it will cost you to approach a trial, to get through a trial, or to survive an appeal? Just like any business venture or purchase of a large asset such as a piece of land or home, resources are needed to initiate, maintain and continue your probate war. You do not want to begin a probate lawsuit and then have to quit a quarter or half way through because you can’t afford it anymore.
3. What do you stand to gain? Do you know what you are seeking? What are your damages? Better yet, what’s the estimated range of damages which you seek? It doesn’t make sense to spend $10 in legal fees to get a five dollar recovery. Be smart. Be prudent. Be rational. Ask your probate lawyer for an estimate of damages, a range of damages which may be possible if you win or lose at trial. What’s your best day in court look like? What’s the worst-case scenario look like?
4. Do you have the right mind frame? Are you serious about this? Probate litigation is time-consuming and expensive. Many also find it stressful.
5. How are you going to prove your case? You need to have a strategy, a plan. Call it a blueprint, a map, it doesn’t matter. But you need to have an idea of where you’re going and how are you going to get there. More importantly, you need to anticipate bumps along the road and what you are  going to do when you encounter them. What if the facts which you seek to uncover are not helpful to your case? What if you can’t locate the witness you were convinced would win your case for you? What if the truth which you seek reveals something you never imagined? How do you deal with that? What’s your plan? You need to have an understanding of what your legal goal is and how you’re going to get there. Why are you objecting to the well? Upon what basis do you think it’s invalid or void? Did mom have dementia when she signed the will? Or maybe you think that dad was unduly influenced by a sibling when he signed his will. These are unique and different fact patterns which require a careful analysis and in many ways a different approach to proving your case. What’s your strategy?

In the end, the decision to initiate and maintain and see-through probate litigation rests with you. Our probate judges in our probate courts provide a forum for you to make your allegations and prove your case. You will get your day in court. The decision which you make on whether to start a probate war or not is an important one. Your choice of a probate litigator is, likewise, an important one. Luckily, a good lawyer will give you many options. Thankfully, there are many good probate litigators out there. Good luck and choose wisely.