Hi. My name is Charles Triay. I practice in the area of probate litigation. People ask me, “What is that?” The easiest way to explain it is to give some examples of the common types of litigation cases that we handle over and over and over again. The first one is the undue influence case where the elder family member has changed their will or trust at the last minute and made a radical change in who’s going to get the property. That arises in one of two ways. One, where a family member has influenced them and the other where a caregiver, a nurse or other care provider has exerted influence.
Another common scenario involved children from the first marriage involved in an inheritance dispute with their parent’s second spouse. Most of the undue influence cases that we handle involve a last minute change in the estate plan that is a radical change. That happens at a time when the person signing the document is sick, either physically or mentally. Just because someone has a signed document in their favor doesn’t mean that it’s valid.
