Q: Can I contest a holographic will written in TN in 1998?
My dad wrote the will 3 days before he died. He was assisted by his step son-in-law, a federal district judge. My sister and I were not mentioned in the will. My dad had told me he had a will 2 years before he died and that he had provided for us in that will.
A: The answer depends on IF and WHEN the 1998 will has been/was admitted to probate. After a will is admitted to common form probate in Tennessee and notice is given to the heirs at law, a challenge may be brought within two years. When a willl is challenged based on claims of undue influence and lack of cmental capacity, a court can consider a number of "suspicious factors" including, for example: (1) your father's age; (2) your father's poor health; (3) any facts tending to proof the will was actively procured by another who benefited; (4) the fact that the terms of the will differed from your father's prior stated intentions. Claims of undue influence and lack of mental capacity are difficult to prove, even when they are timely brought, and are highly fact-dependent. If the 1998 will was admitted to common form probate within the last 2 years,then, yes, it could be challenged.
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