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What To Do If You're Dealing With A Family Member Contesting A Will

If someone in your family has recently passed away and someone else in your family is contesting the will, you could be dealing with a really stressful situation right now. It can be tough to know how to handle this type of situation, but if you are dealing with a family member contesting a will, these steps can help you get the situation resolved.

Be Careful About How You Communicate

First of all, you should be careful about how you communicate with the family member who is contesting the will. These situations can get very emotional and stressful, and it's easy to say the wrong things. However, if you aren't careful about what you say and how you react, the whole situation could get a lot worse. Instead of letting your temper or emotions get the best of you, try to avoid getting into arguments.

Gather Up Evidence

In many cases, families only have the family will to go off of after someone passes away. In some cases, though, there is other evidence out there that backs up what the will says. If you have emails from a family member that outlines what your family member wanted to have done with his or her estate, for example, printing out these emails can be helpful. If you have witnesses who might have talked to your family member about his or her final wishes or who might have witnessed your loved one's state of mind and condition when making and signing his or her will, then these witnesses could be helpful when handling this case.

Hire a Probate Attorney

Lastly, it's often a good idea to hire a probate attorney. A probate attorney focuses on handling this type of situation all the time and can help you have your loved one's will handled properly, hopefully without a long and drawn-out court case.

If one of your family members is in the process of contesting a will after one of your loved ones has passed away, then you might be experiencing a lot of stress because of it. You could also be worried about not being given the things that you are supposed to receive based on your loved one's will. The steps above will help you handle this situation, though, and can help you make sure that your loved one's estate is handled in the way that you hoped it would be.


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