Will and Trust Contest Time Limits

A Philadelphia will or trust contest time limits attorney will advise you about whether or not you've exceeded the statute of limitations. A Philadelphia will or trust contest time limit attorney is someone you should obtain as soon as possible when the case kicks off.

When you have reason to believe that a will was procured through fraud or some other illegal action, you have the responsibility to show this to the court. You must have ample evidence on your side in order to succeed when making claims like this, and it’s not a matter that should be taken lightly. Your lawyer should understand what you hope to accomplish and will help you file the right papers.

If a person dies with a will, a probate estate can be opened by submitting the will to the Register of Wills in the county of death. Any person who wishes to test the will has a limited period of time in which they may do so. This is known as the statute of limitation or time limitations. Usually one year from the time that the letters are issued, the person has maxed out their opportunity to file an appeal. However, the court has the authority to limit the appeal to a time as short as three months, which is what any person who believes that they have grounds to contest a will should do so as soon as possible.

Courts have certainly allowed exceptions to the time limit in very specific circumstances, including allegations of forgery, fraud or failure of the will's executor to notify an invested party about the estate. Wills can also be contested by lodging a caveat with the Register of Wills, but this is usually done before the will is submitted by someone who hopes to prevent any register from recognizing that the will is indeed valid. Revocable trust contests also have a specific period of time in which they must be filed in order to comply with legal requirements. More and more people are using revocable trusts as a way to avoid probate. That being said, Pennsylvania law has followed suit by allowing a time limit for contesting revocable trusts. Pennsylvania law has a specific requirement about a revocable trust trustee sending out notices upon the death of the person who created the trust. Notice has to be sent to certain people including the deceased person's children and spouse, letting them know some basic details about the trust. Furthermore, the trustee has to send this notice within 30 days of learning about the death. From that point in time, a person who wishes to test the validity of that revocable trust has one year after the date of notice to lodge a petition in court. Furthermore, the court still maintains the eligibility to shorten that time limit to 6 months and more courts are opting to do this, so it is important to verify your legal rights to contest a trust. Whether it is a revocable trust or a will, it is important to take action as soon as possible to determine whether or not there exist grounds to dispute the existence of a revocable trust or the terms inside of it. Your initial consultation with an experienced Philadelphia lawyer can help to reveal what issues are involved in probate administration and how to raise dispute allegations. The decision to speak directly with a lawyer can have a significant impact on the outcome of your case and can make it that much easier for you to move on with your life.