The Client:

A bank serving as Trustee, and the son and grandson of a now deceased Trustor

 

The Situation:

In 1996, the Trustor changed her will to leave her $3 million dollar estate exclusively to her son and grandson. Under her old will, her son and 2 granddaughters (daughters of Trustor’s predeceased daughter) would inherit her estate. Under her new will, her son and grandson would inherit. Her stated reasons for changing her will was that her granddaughters already received inheritances from their deceased parents and grandfather, while her grandson had never inherited any money and had financial burdens in caring for elderly and other infirm family members that the granddaughters, who were affluent, did not have. The granddaughters alleged that the Trustor was incompetent to execute the estate documents and was unduly influenced by the son and grandson to change her will.

 

The Chartwell Solution:

The granddaughters obtained expert testimony from two doctors who opined that the Trustor was incompetent at the time she changed her will and subject to undue influence. However, we were able to track down witnesses, including the Trustor’s former housekeeper, the lawyer who drafted her will, and former bank officers who had dealt with Trustor back in 1996, who all testified as to Trustor’s mental acuity. With effective examination and cross examination, the court was persuaded to disregard the expert opinions, and ruled that the will was valid, allowing the grandson to inherit half the estate.