What Can Be Done to Prevent My Family from Contesting My Will?

By - Stouffer Legal

If you worry that your family member(s) may disagree with any provisions of your Last Will and Testament, then your estate planning attorney can use some of the following strategies to minimize the chances of a will contest.  

1. Explain in the will very thoroughly any unequal distributions. For example, if your daughter provided care to you and you want to leave her more than another daughter who lives far away, then rather than simply stating the distribution, make it known in the instrument that the reason for the unequal distribution is the care provided by Daughter A. 
2. Include a clause offering for the estate to pay for mediation, and even designate a specific mediator, in the event conflict should arise.

Include a Letter of Intent with your estate plan where you write your intentions and explain your thought process to all beneficiaries. Often hearing a thorough explanation of why you made the choices you made will help to assuage family members into accepting your terms.

Call (443) 470-3599 today and schedule a consultation with one of our experienced Maryland Estate Planing Attorneys to learn more about Estate or Elder Law and how we can help you.