Trust litigation can be a challenging process when it involves family members attempting to gain a trust without consent of others in the family. This can be a scenario that’s devastating to you if you have a sibling who’s done this without letting you know as means of gaining access to a parent’s assets. It’s a situation we’ve seen many times with our clients at Ford + Bergner LLP, and we can help you through similar situations.
But different scenarios might arise when this happens that could create complex legal territory to tread on. It’s why you should always handle trust litigation through an experienced lawyer who has years of experience dealing with estate issues like guardianship, probate, or trusts.
What Are Typical Scenarios in Undue Influence?
Most typically, it’s a brother, sister, or other relative who happens to be taking care of an aging parent who convinces the parent to execute a trust. They may convince the parent that they deserve complete control of all assets since they’re putting in full-time as a personal caretaker. This may not necessarily be done willfully by the parent if it’s common knowledge that the parent is suffering from senility.
In this scenario, there could be some kind of threat by the sibling against the parent if they don’t start the trust. We’ve seen cases where this is proven, and it’s never pleasant. However, the parent might have done it so they could continue to have the sibling care for them. In those threat instances, the sibling might threaten to walk away as caregiver if the parent doesn’t start a trust in their name.
Proving these cases requires considerable evidence and legal preparation by us. We’ll help determine if that trust in question can be challenged under a specific category. While undue influence is one, we can also challenge a trust based on fraud, ones created while under duress, or based squarely on the parent not being mentally fit.
Contact us at Ford + Bergner LLP so we can help you if you think a trust started by a sibling should be challenged due to undue influence. We’ll help you step by step through the process by acquiring the proper evidence so you have a strong case.