Contested Wills in Easton, Pennsylvania

Find the right Contested Wills attorney in Easton, PA

Sometimes, family members of a recently-deceased person in Easton, Pennsylvania will attempt to claim that a will is invalid, usually because it leaves them out of it. This process is called a "Will contest."

Occasionally, when a person who expected to be included in a will is left out, their natural assumption is that there was some mistake, or that the will was made through improper means, such as duress or fraud, or that the will is an outright forgery.

If a large amount of money or property is being given away, the person left out of the will could rationally conclude that the cost and time of a court challenge is worth it.

As with the initiation of any other legal proceeding, contesting a will is a big decision. It can be time-consuming and costlye. It also has the possibility to damage family relationships and foster strife among individuals who are already mourning the loss of a loved one.

When Can a Will be Contested in Easton, Pennsylvania?

Of course, an Easton, Pennsylvania court will not invalidate a will without a very good reason, but there are some situations which render a will clearly invalid.

For instance, if the will was obtained through duress (threat of some kind of harm), then it is invalid. Duress, however, is difficult to prove. If a named beneficiary was in some position of power or trust with the decedent, and is not someone who one would ordinarily expect to get a large gift in a will, that might raise significant initial suspicion of something improper happening. Of course, those facts alone are not nearly enough to prove duress.

Another fact that might invalidate a will is the mental incompetence of the testator. Wills must be a product of a person's volition. A will cannot be truly voluntary unless the testator knows what they're doing. Therefore, if the testator is mentally incompetent at the time he or she makes the will, the will cannot take effect. You should be aware, however, that this test applies at the time the will is made. So, if the testator is not mentally competent at the time of death, but was when the will was made, the will is valid.

If an Easton, Pennsylvania will is successfully challenged and thus invalidated, there has to be some system for orderly distribution of the decedent's property. Usually, if a will is held invalid, all of the property will be treated as if the decedent had never written or will. This means that it goes to the decedent's closest living relative, or, if there are not relatives who can be located, the state.

Can a Easton, Pennsylvania Contested Will Attorney Help?

Contesting a will is never particularly easy or enjoyable. However, a reputable Easton, Pennsylvania attorney can help take some of the burden off of you, and handle some of the most difficult aspects of this process.

Talk to a Wills, Trusts & Estates Law Attorney now!

Life in Easton

Easton, Pennsylvania is a city in Northampton County. Its population is currently about 27,000 people. It is the county seat of Northampton County.

Easton is very close to the same distance from Philadelphia and New York city, with Philadelphia 60 miles to the south, and New York City about 70 miles to the east. The puts residents of Easton in a position where they have fairly easy access to two iconic American cities.

Easton, Pennsylvania was founded in the 1752, and was named after a town in England of the same name (many English settlements are, for obvious reasons, named after English cities). It proved to be an important military center during the Revolutionary War, and it was one of the first places where the Declaration of Independence was publicly read.

Modernly, Easton is home to the Crayola factory, a major toy manufacturer. Like many cities in the region, Easton, Pennsylvania used to have far more industry than it does now.

If you have a legal problem, there are plenty of Easton, Pennsylvania lawyers who can help you solve it, or at least mitigate it. If you need legal help, you should contact an Easont, Pennsylvania lawyer immediately.

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