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out-of-court deals w/contested will

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vbh

Guest
An old friend of mine died last September. He owned about 80 acres of beautiful wooded property as well as a house that is now on the State Historic Building list(or something to that effect). He grew up in the house and had a bitter dispute with his two sisters over the land following his mother's death...no will. After a year of disagreements over what was a fair and equitable division of the 300 acres and other property, they reached an agreement on the division of the assets of the mother. My friend only wanted to retain ownership of the house and salvage as much of the land as possible for no other reason than his love for his house and respect for the undeveloped land as a wildlife habitat and just the beauty of a great expanse of greenspace in a county growing into a sea of asphalt and beige subdivisions. The sisters just wanted the value of the land, which they received and signed off on. Regretfully, my friend did not heed his attorney's advice (my father was his attorney) and procrastinated for years in drawing up a will. Yet, a bit more than a month prior to his death, he finally drew up the document with Dad's law partner (my father had died the previous year...and this prompted my friend to finally heed his attorney's repeated entreaties as to creating a last will and testament. My friend's main concern was that neither of his sisters EVER gain any portion of that which he had fought so stubbornly for and they had so cavalierly sold to the highest bidder. Thereafter, the two sisters "disowned" him and refused to talk to him. For as long as I have known this friend, 28 years),he had consistently demonstrated verbally and otherwise his dislike for one sister in particular. Now this "sister" has contested this man's Last Will and Testament...which leaves everything to a young girl who he helped raise at one point in time...and had maintained contact with this 22 year old and even called her 2 out-of-wedlock kids his "grandchildren". He wanted her to have complete control of his assets at the age of 30. He specifically mentioned both sisters by name in this document...as the two people in the world who he never wanted to benefit from his assets...and under no circumstances should anything go to them! So, now this sister is challenging the validity of the will on any ground she can come up with...but it appears that she has finally decided to question this man's competence at the signing of this will. I feel that this sister is using her wealth to "force" this 22 year old into submission. They've been conducting depositions for months now. The girl's grandmother hired an attorney but is running out of money. The "bank" is the executor and trustee of this estate. They also handle funds of the sister's and appear to be willing to accept the sister's wishes regarding the disposition of the property that had to be sold to pay off creditors (themselves). I have no interest in this property other than it was my friend's intention to salvage as much as possible and to keep it out of the hands of this one sister. I had not had much more than 3 or 4 contacts with him a year...but those contacts confirmed to me his deep love for his land as well as his hatred for his sister. I also had visited with him about 1 week after he had drawn up the Will and we discussed that. Additionally, I had daily contact with him as he was allowed to linger in a hospital until we could finally get him back home to the house where his father and his mother had passed and where this human being deserved to take his last breaths. My question: The sister has now offerred this young woman 125,000.00 to "settle" the dispute and the sister would "go away and leave her alone". The will has not even been probated yet! Isn't this a very unethical if not illegal way to subvert the wishes of my friend? Doesn't the Judge and only the Judge have the authority to negate this Will? This kid would rather have the fast cash NOW than the true value of the property (1 million) in the 8 years provided for in the Trust. Of course!! This is why that property and the assets were put into a trust!!! Is this legal? They do not have the money anymore to contionue the depositions and cannot call me...and I am sure the sister would not want my testimony. I have information that I think is pertinent and goes to the credibility and lucidity of my friend's thinking. What in the world can I do in order for the Judge to take my testimony into account before rendering any decision regarding the validity of this Will? Do I have any options here? Can I write to the Judge? And even if I cannot contribute to the testimony, can anyone "settle" anything before the Judge rules on the validity? Can they just ignore the will of this man and make up their own rules? Please, I need feedback and answers! jenny (Kansas)
 


ALawyer

Senior Member
Contesting a Will is very difficult and can be VERY expensive.

The lawyers for the evil sisters seem to have pulled out all stops and are using their money and power to pressure the 22 year old.

Now they are offering her a bribe of sorts -- a sure $125k now vs. a potential $1 million in 8 years. At 9.0% compound interest that $125k would grow to $250k in 8 years not that 9% is attainable with any degree of safety in these times, while the $1 million would also grow and be worth much more in 8 years and she should be told that. Also, there are firms that will loan her part of the money she will eventually inherit once the right to take is established; their rates are high (they buy life insurance on her to make sure that if she does not make it to 30 they still get their money).

I STRONGLY doubt your friend was mentally incompetent (but if he wanted the land preserved, the fact that he left it to a 22 year old, who could sell it, instead of to the state or charity to be used solely for park or presevation purposes DOES sound bizarre and possibly shows an irrational hatred). However in over 95% of these cases will contests fail, and the will is admitted to probate.

I would urge you to contact the 22 year old's lawyers and share with them what you know and can testify to. That may strengthen their case for the will. And yes, the judge, or perhaps a jury, decides the facts.

As for the deal offered by the evil sisters, it is 1/8th the value the 22 year old is likely entitled to. I would bet that she has a MUCH better chance of prevailing than 1 out of 8 probably 7 out of 8 based on general stats. It is a lousy deal.
 
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vbh

Guest
out-of-court deals with contested wills

Thanks, "Alawyer". I appreciate your insight. Can you answer the question if it is appropriate, ethical or legal for me to write a letter to the Judge regarding the issues I described briefly in this forum? Also, is it ethical or legal to offer a "bribe" to this 22 year old prior to this mess being finalized by a Judge? As to my friend's competence in choosing this 22 year old, he had wanted at least one generation more to live in the house and enjoy the property, realizing that someday it would be sold...and crossing his fingers that the 22 year old would perhaps understand this when she becomes a thirty year old. There are provisions in the trust that allow her to borrow against it. However, until this thing is finalized it appears that no one will be living in the house or borrowing against the value. Additionally, do you see any reason for her to continue with the intense lawyering she has received as far as the depos are concerned? She can't afford the expense and I wonder why should she continue---the bank has its lawyers, the attorney who created the will I assume is defending its validity...why should she continue with her lawyer? She has no more money. If she does not continue to retain legal counsel, so what? Let the sister waste her money...wouldn't the outcome be the same in the eyes of the Judge? Isn't it as obvious to the Judge as it was to you that the evil sister is attempting to wear this kid and her finances down ? Kansas-vbh
 

ALawyer

Senior Member
The lawyer who drew the Will has NO obligation to defend its validity. That's the sole obligation of the beneficiary.

Most judges would think it highly improper to be contacted by someone not a party to the case, ouside of normal channels. In some cases it may actually operate against her ultimate interests. Her lawyer is the one for you to contact.

If you want to help you could offer to advance future lawyer bills as a LOAN against the estate. If someone were to do that and the other side then realized that she can't be compelled to settle for pennies on the dollar because of litigation costs, they'd drop the case or settle on very good terms. IF it were me first I would pay for a consultation by a REALLY EXERPENCED NEW lawyer -- some one who is a probate litigation specialist -- ideally from a large city or major county -- to see if the other side actually has a legitimate basis for challenging the Will, and also see if her current lawyer has been and is handling the matter properly and financially prudently given her limited resources, and also I would also ask the new lawyer to explore the opportunities to recover her counsel costs so that if and when the will is upheld, the contestants may be compelled to pay not only their legal bills, but also the beneficiary's bills.

That's what gets bad cases to go away and helps settle weak cases on very favorable terms!
 
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vbh

Guest
will contest by evil sister

Thanks again, ALawyer. I will probably go ahead and shell out the bucks for a new and expert probate lawyer for a consultation. Can you answer that final question of mine? In Kansas I am sure that our judges are of high intelligence...or at least average anyway and I know that the Judges in this county have been on the bench for decades. Therefore, does not an honest, intelligent and experienced Judge take great offense at the perversion of the justice system by greedy "evil sister" types who attempt to bypass the court and it's wisdom and bribe a named beneficiary to settle this will contest in direct contradiction to the will of the deceased? If this behavior by the sister is not illegal, it appears to me to be at a minimum unethical and even immoral. I include this "evil sister's" attorneys as equally greedy, unethical and immoral. Are not Judges offended by such behavior of claimants in the attempt to circumvent the legal system and disregard completely the wishes of the deceased? What assurance does anyone have that the Last Will and Testament will be fairly and legally disposed? How can a Judge NOT take offense at such a perversion of another human beings last wishes by a woman who was mentioned by name in my friend's will as the last person on earth he would ever want to see benefitting from his estate?!! Wish someone could explain that to me! Thanks for any explanation---vbh
 

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