When your inheritance or property rights are at stake, or the wellbeing of a vulnerable person is under threat, it may be necessary to touch base with a probate litigation lawyer as soon as you can to learn about your legal options.
For example, in all the following scenarios, undesirable consequences could result if you don’t work with a probate litigation lawyer to take prompt legal action:
- Suppose a deceased person’s will or trust contradicts their known final intentions.
Suppose a power of attorney, trustee, executor/administrator or conservator is abusing their authority.
- Suppose someone is trying to wrongfully obtain a conservatorship or guardianship.
Suppose a deceased debtor’s estate denied your valid creditor claim.
You can trust the California probate litigators at Keystone Law to provide an honest assessment of your case to help you determine whether hiring a probate litigation law firm is necessary.
What Is Probate Litigation?
In the simplest of terms, probate litigation is the legal process for resolving disputes arising after a person’s incapacity or death.
Keep in mind that some probate litigation matters may fall slightly outside this definition (e.g., guardianship, certain elder financial abuse claims). If you’re unsure whether your legal matter falls within the purview of probate litigation, reach out to our probate litigation law firm for further guidance.
What Is a Probate Litigation Attorney?
A probate litigation attorney is a type of lawyer who mainly specializes in disputes arising after a person’s incapacity or death. A probate litigation attorney can handle a wide variety of matters — everything from estate, trust and will disputes to fiduciary misconduct claims to contested conservatorships and guardianships.
Probate litigators help ensure probate matters are resolved fairly and efficiently. Even when matters are contentious, an experienced probate litigator can help keep things civil, minimizing damage to family relationships.
What Is the Difference Between an Estate Planning Attorney and Probate Litigation Attorney?
While estate planning attorneys and probate litigation lawyers tend to work with the same legal documents (e.g., wills, trusts, powers of attorney), the services they provide, as well as when they provide them, differ significantly.
An estate planning attorney can assist you with preparing for your incapacity and death. The services they provide cover both personal and financial needs. For example, an estate planning attorney can help you create an Advance Health Care Directive, which outlines your medical wishes and appoints a health care agent to make medical decisions on your behalf should you lose capacity during your lifetime. In the same vein, an estate planning attorney can help you create a will or trust to provide instructions surrounding the distribution of your assets after you die. In essence, an estate planning attorney helps to ensure your final wishes are honored after your incapacity or death.
A probate litigation attorney, on the other hand, is hired after a person’s incapacity or death. They can handle both non-adversarial and adversarial proceedings related to trusts, estates, guardianships, and conservatorships brought in the probate court. For example, a probate litigation attorney can help you contest a trust or contest a will, bring a claim against a trustee or executor for fiduciary misconduct, or even to contest a conservatorship or guardianship.
Let us illustrate the difference between an estate planning attorney and probate litigation attorney with a couple examples. While you may require an estate planning attorney to create a trust, you may require a probate litigation attorney to contest a trust. Similarly, while you may require an estate planning attorney to enact a power of attorney, you may require a probate litigation attorney to sue an agent for power of attorney abuse.
That said, estate planning attorneys may also practice probate litigation, and vice versa; however, at Keystone, we solely practice probate litigation and administration to ensure our clients receive specialized top-tier representation.
7 Reasons to Hire a Probate Litigation Attorney
Probate litigation is a highly complex area of the law. Therefore, a specialized expertise — one only seasoned probate litigators tend to possess — is required to effectively navigate it.
Explore the list below to learn when a probate litigation lawyer may be necessary. Keep in mind the list is not comprehensive. It should, however, help you understand the types of matters a probate litigation law firm can take on.
1. You Want to Dispute a Will or Trust
Is there ambiguous language in a will or trust?
Does a will or trust fail to reflect the known final intentions of its creator?
Did a deceased person create a will or trust when they lacked the capacity to do so?
Is it possible a deceased person’s changes to their will or trust were the result of undue influence?
Probate litigation lawyers breathe wills and trusts. Therefore, they can readily detect when there are problems with the documents. Whether you are seeking to contest a will or trust, or gain clarity about its terms, the services of a probate litigation lawyer may be necessary.
2. You Want to Sue a Fiduciary
Was there a misappropriation of trust funds by the trustee?
Is an executor refusing to provide accounting to beneficiaries?
Is an attorney-in-fact failing to satisfy their power of attorney obligations to family members?
Fiduciaries are required to always act in the best interests of the persons they represent. When they fail to do so, it may be necessary to hire a probate litigation lawyer to hold them accountable.
3. You Want to Enforce Your Inheritance Rights
Is an estate holding property that was supposed to be distributed to you via a trust, or vice versa?
Did someone steal property from a deceased person when they were alive that was supposed to eventually pass to their estate beneficiaries?
Can an agreement not be reached on how to carry out an inherited property split between siblings?
Your inheritance rights are important. When your inheritance rights are at risk of being violated, working with a probate litigation lawyer to enforce them may be necessary.
4. You Suspect an Elder is Being Financially Abused
Is a caretaker stealing from the home of your elderly loved one with dementia?
Is someone manipulating your dependent family member to give away their property?
Is someone scamming your elderly friend out of their life savings?
When the financial wellbeing of an elder or dependent adult is in jeopardy, it is necessary to immediately seek the help of a probate litigation lawyer to stop the abuse and undo any damage it may already have caused.Â
5. You Want to Protect a Vulnerable Adult or Minor
Is someone seeking conservatorship over your parent for the wrong reasons?
Are your family members aggressively fighting for guardianship rights over your child?
Contested conservatorships and guardianships can be difficult to navigate because the laws that govern them are complex and nuanced. For this reason, a probate litigation lawyer may be necessary to prove your position.
6. You Want to Enforce Your Creditor Rights
Do you need to enforce a judgment against a deceased debtor’s estate?
Do you need to bring a Marvin action to enforce an agreement you made with your unmarried cohabitating partner around property before they died?
A probate litigation lawyer may be necessary in enforcing your creditor rights. Creditor disputes are subject to strict rules, procedures and deadlines. Without a probate litigation lawyer by your side, errors are more likely, which could limit your ability to litigate your claim.
7. You Want to Appeal a Probate Court Decision
Did a probate court or judge err in interpreting or applying the law to your probate dispute?
Did they err in deciding what evidence could or could not be considered?
Was there no basis from the facts before the court to support the decision made?
Probate appeals aren’t always easy to win, so if you plan to invest the time, money and energy into filing one, retaining a probate litigation lawyer is necessary for the best possible chances of success.
Why Hire Keystone as Your Probate Litigation Law Firm?
Once you’ve decided you need a probate litigation attorney, the next step is figuring out which probate litigation law firm best suits your needs.
At Keystone, we exclusively specialize in probate litigation and administration. Unlike many of our competitors, who practice probate law and estate planning, Keystone maintains a laser focus on probate law. This has allowed us to achieve a level of mastery in the field that largely goes unmatched.
What’s more, Keystone is what is known as a boutique law firm, which basically means that we are small and practice in a niche area of the law. For this reason, we have the capacity to provide personalized attention and guidance to each of our clients. Our clients are not just case numbers; they are family.
But don’t take our word for it! Explore our client testimonials, success stories and accolades to see for yourself what sets Keystone apart.
Have more probate litigation questions?
If you’re unsure whether you need a probate litigation attorney or what one can do for you, our team is here to provide the guidance you need.
Keystone is the largest probate litigation law firm in the state. We owe our success to the dedication, skill and unmatched expertise of our probate litigation attorneys. Each of them has undergone rigorous training and accumulated significant experience to ensure their clients receive top-tier representation.
Whether you have questions, concerns, or are ready to take the next steps in the probate litigation process, our probate litigation attorneys are here to help.
