Finding Evidence to Challenge a Trust Based on Mental Incapacity

Related Links:

Ten Considerations for Will Contests

Five Reasons an Heir Might Challenge a Will

Are you concerned your loved one was taken advantage of while in a weakened mental state? If your loved one signed a will or trust in San Diego while lacking the mental capacity, you may have grounds to challenge its validity. This requires evidence to support the claim your loved one was mentally impaired when signing the estate documents. How can you gather this evidence? Consider taking the following six steps:

Gathering evidence to challenge a trust

1. Review medical records to determine if there were any diagnoses relating to mental health on the day the trust was executed.
2. Determine whether your loved one went through a formal neurological assessment before signing the trust or will.
3. Interview eye-witnesses present at the signing of the trust. These interviews may provide value information as to the mental state of the individual when signing the trust document.
4. Determine whether the individual made any verbal or written statements immediately prior to the signing of the trust instrument.
5. Determine whether the individual made any verbal or written statements of intention for the trust in the time preceding the document signing. Are these statements consistent with the trust instrument?
6. Determine if there is a video-tape of the signing.

Challenging the validity of a will or trust based on these claims requires a thorough understanding of their handling. Our article, “California Will Contest or Trust Contest Based on Mental Incapacity,” provides a helpful overview as to how these claims work.

To learn more about mental incapacity and other San Diego trust contest claims, we encourage you to find us on YouTube!