How Can I Prevent My Beneficiaries from Contesting My Will?

Whether you are making plans for your will and other estate planning tools, or you already have a will in place, you may be wondering if there are steps you can take in order to prevent your beneficiaries from contesting your will. This is often a concern in families where beneficiaries are not receiving equal assets, or in family circumstances where particular parties are estranged from one another. For example, you may have multiple adult children, and you may be planning to leave the most significant of your assets to just one of those children. In addition, you may know that your children often disagree with one another, or even that one or more of your children are estranged from their siblings. This is just one example of the type of situation where a will contest might seem more likely, and you may be wondering if there is anything you can do to prevent it.

Even in the most amicable circumstances, will contests or will challenges can occur. But they may be more likely when certain family dynamics are at work. Our Gwinnett County estate planning lawyers can tell you more about some potential ways to prevent your beneficiaries from contesting your will, but you should speak with a lawyer in detail about the specifics of your case before you make any decisions about how to proceed.

Have a Self-Proving Will, Codicil, or Affidavit

There are specific requirements for making a will in Georgia, including requirements for the testator (the person making the will) to be able to lawfully create this document, and requirements for ensuring that the will is enforceable. In addition to requirements, a testator and their witnesses can go before a notary public in order to make the will self-proving. In other words, a self-proving will is one that has been signed by the testator and the witnesses, and notarized by a notary public. With a self-proving will, there is a presumption that the legal requirements have been met, and the witnesses to the will do not usually need to testify during probate.

If you already made your will and it is not self-proving, you can create a codicil (an addition to your will) or an affidavit that makes the will self-proving.

Discuss the Details with Your Beneficiaries and Make Your Wishes Clear

It can be extremely difficult to do so under some circumstances, but discussing the terms of your will with your beneficiaries and making your wishes clear can help your beneficiaries to come to terms with your decisions so that they do not ultimately try to contest your will.

Include a No-Contest Clause

Georgia allows no-contest clauses in wills and trusts. They must include instructions for what happens to the forfeited share if the clause is triggered by a challenge.  Georgia courts apply a rule called strict construction. That means the clause is only enforced if the heir’s actions clearly break the rules written into it.  Unlike many other states, Georgia doesn’t offer a “probable cause” exception. That means even if someone has a good reason to contest a will, like fraud or undue influence, they still risk losing their inheritance unless their challenge actually wins.

Contact a Norcross Estate Planning Attorney 

Do you have concerns about one or more of your beneficiaries attempting to contest your will after you are gone? There are ways you may be able to prevent or limit certain will contests, and you should also speak with a lawyer about leaving assets by methods outside a will to avoid the possibility of a challenge. An experienced Norcross estate planning lawyer at Bowman Law Firm can help.

Sources:

law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-53/

law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-53/chapter-4/article-3/section-53-4-24/

cases.justia.com/georgia/supreme-court/2022-s21g1226.pdf?ts=1656612562

caselaw.findlaw.com/court/ga-court-of-appeals/2093652.html