Wills 2
Q: I was a teacher, living at home and getting older. My family said that he wasn’t suitable, but I married him anyway. At that time, both my sisters stated in the presence of our mother that I should never have “one cent of our money.” My mother responded that she continued to love me. “She is my child, and should have her share of the property.”
Afterwards, my mother visited among people in the vicinity of my home, and she could have talked to me, had she desired to do so. That never happened. Finally, a few days before her death, I visited her twice.
My mother was a strong and resolute woman. Eventually, she ceased to work and came to decline. When it came time to draw up a will, I understand that the attorney asked my mother specifically in regard to me, and discussed the matter of discriminating against me with my mother. “She has made me more trouble than all the other children I ever bore. At last she married a man she knew the family all objected to, and my heart was broken. She shall never have a dollar that I worked to save.”
A: I am afraid that your sisters had the right to use any reasonable and legitimate argument to induce your mother to make her will in a particular way. The giving of advice and the use of argument and persuasion do not constitute ground for avoiding a will made by a competent testatrix. A will cannot be avoided because of undue influence – unless it appears that the influence exerted was so potent at the time the will was made as to overcome the power of the testatrix to act freely and upon her own volition.
By: Scott Baron,
Attorney at Law Advertorial
The law responds to changed conditions; exceptions and variations abound. Here, the information is general; always seek out competent counsel. This article shall not be construed as legal advice.
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