A Probate Lawyer’s Perspective On Spousal Estrangement

A will is not valid unless the testator signs it in the presence of two witnesses, but the witnesses do not have to be beneficiaries of the will, and they do not even have to read it carefully.  Some people keep their silence about the contents of their wills.  This strategy can keep the peace during the testator’s lifetime, but it can also bring plenty of unpleasant surprises during probate.  Sometimes the personal representative of the estate has the unenviable task of telling close family members of the decedent that he or she disinherited them.  Most of them have no choice but to accept the decedent’s decision, surprising and hurtful as it may be.  The exception is the decedent’s surviving spouse.  The surviving spouse has the right to claim an elective share of the decedent’s estate if the decedent left little or nothing to the spouse in his or her will.  An Orlando probate lawyer can help you if you are the personal representative of the estate of someone who died while on bad terms with his or her spouse.

Undue Influence Can Cause Family Estrangement as Easily as It Causes Amendments to Estate Planning Documents

One of the most common reasons for challenges to a will is allegations of undue influence.  Disinherited family members allege that the main beneficiary of the will sabotaged the decedent’s relationship with the rest of the family and manipulated the testator into changing the will to the interloper’s benefit.  Many disputes over undue influence involve a widowed decedent who left the bulk of his estate to the wife he married near the end of his life.  Sometimes, though, undue influence disputes involve a testator who was married at the time of his or her death.  For example, Floridians will remember the news stories about Burt and Lovey Handelsman, who were as famous for the longevity of their marriage as for their real estate empire.  In their final years, they became estranged and filed for divorce, and each spouse accused the other of alienating other family members from him or her.

Death Has the Final Decision About Whether a Divorce Case Goes Through

Disagreements and hurt feelings are an inevitable part of every long marriage, and couples who have been together for decades have resolved multiple conflicts between themselves over the years.  From a legal perspective, every pending divorce case is a legally valid marriage where there is still a chance that the couple may reconcile.  If one spouse dies while the divorce case is pending, the divorce case disappears as if it had never begun.  The most recent version of the decedent’s will is the one that goes to probate.  If the decedent disinherited his or her spouse after the divorce filing, the surviving spouse still has the right to claim an elective share of the estate.

Contact Gierach and Gierach About Probate Cases

A probate lawyer can help you if you are representing the estate of someone whose surviving relatives include an estranged spouse.  Contact Gierach and Gierach, P.A. in Orlando, Florida to discuss your case.

Source:

nbcmiami.com/investigations/sergio-pinos-insane-delusion-invalidates-his-will-his-widow-claims/3388365/