LA Probate Law Talks About Contesting a False Will
Unfortunately this is an increasingly popular form of elder abuse. Unscrupulous parties will frequently convince an elderly or incompetent person to write an estate plan, or change their existing one, to make the unscrupulous person the beneficiary of the elderly person’s estate. Sometimes the victim is convinced to sign a deed or transfer assets. What is not commonly known (even among many estate planners) is that certain estate planning decisions are presumed fraudulent under law. LA Probate Law is familiar with statutory presumptions and have challenged numerous estate plans on the basis of fraud, forgery, undue influence and impaired capacity.
Contest
The best strategy is almost always to challenge these arrangements while the victim is still alive. Upon an appropriate petition, the probate court is empowered to void asset transfers and cancel estate planning documents that were created improperly. Forged Wills can arise from family problems, as do the other kinds of disputed Wills. However, there have also been cases where fraudsters have targeted isolated elderly people with no close relatives or friends in order to gather the knowledge required to falsify a Will in their name. In these situations there may be nobody to challenge the Will or make a claim regarding the true wishes of the deceased says LA Probate Law.
Recovery
Assets must normally be recovered through a civil lawsuit or action. In some instances, the probate court has expedited procedures that allow asset recovery for the victims of elder abuse says LA Probate Law. If the victim is not able to protect himself, the probate court is empowered to appoint a conservator to pursue asset recovery. Interested parties such as heirs and beneficiaries are also entitled to seek court intervention.
Forgery
A person “falsely makes” a written instrument when he makes or draws a complete written instrument in its entirety, or an incomplete written instrument, which purports to be an authentic creation of its ostensible maker or drawer, but which is not such either because the ostensible maker or drawer is fictitious or because, if real, he did not authorize the making or drawing thereof explains LA Probate Law. The intent must be to defraud another, but it is not requisite that any one should have been injured. It is sufficient that the instrument forged might have proved prejudicial. An unfortunate side-effect of proving a forged Will is that the fraudsters may still receive a share of the estate if they are related to the deceased. This is because in many cases the invalidation of a Will which is proven to be forged leads to the deceased being declared intestate, meaning that the default inheritance rules apply.
LA Probate Law Talks About Contesting a False Will
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