If you are starting to show signs of a condition like Alzheimer’s or dementia, then you’re probably worried about the future of your medical care and the distribution of your assets once you pass away. Although the estate planning process can give you some sense of comfort, in many of these instances family members end up contesting the estate plan in hopes of securing a larger inheritance for themselves. This is especially true if any of your family members are disgruntled by the distribution scheme you’ve created.
Here, they argue that the estate plan’s creator simply didn’t have the mental capacity to create a legally binding estate plan. If they’re successful in their argument, then your estate plan might be deemed invalid, which can completely disrupt every aspect of your estate plan.
How can you protect your estate plan from a potential contest?
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to protect your estate plan from a contest. This includes doing the following:
- Getting evaluated by your doctor close in time to your estate plan’s execution so that they can speak to your cognitive abilities, memory and overall mental capacity close in time to when your estate plan documents are executed.
- Using a no-contest clause that disinherits someone if they try to contest any part of your estate plan and are unsuccessful in doing so.
- Giving lifetime gifts to those who are set to inherit from you so that their acceptance of them can serve as an acknowledgement that you have the mental wherewithal to dispose of your assets as you see fit.
- Having plenty of witnesses present during the execution of your estate plan who can attest to your mental clarity at that time.
Know how to protect the viability of your estate plan
There may be other ways that your estate plan can come under attack once you’re gone. To minimize the risk of that happening, you need to exercise foresight and be proactive in crafting your estate plan in a way to puts these arguments to rest. If you’d like to learn more about how to do that, then please continue to read up on the estate planning process.