How do you contest a will that you have been cut out of?

[JonnyBoy12]

Sorry if this question has been asked before but this really is a serious question. Many people have been threatened with being cut out of a will due to one thing or another but can this be contested? I have heard from a friend that you can do this but does there not have to be a case of mental illness proved?

Can anyone here shed any light on the contesting of wills they have been cut out of and what do we do in these circumstances?

[boxtops]

In order to sign a will you have to be mentally competent - there are provisos under the Mental Capacity Act which mean that someone else cannot act for a person until all the criteria have been met.

There is nothing to stop you challenging a will, as I understand it - some people just cut people out from malice, or bad feeling or a number of reasons - it can still be challenged, but I don't know how you go about it. It doesn't have to be only if the deceased person was mentally incapable.

[Barmaid]

English law provides that a testator can be capricious. We have no system of forced heirship, unlike other jurisdictions.

There are numerous ways of challenging a will: lack of testamentary capacity (the test is not the one under the MCA, but under a case called Banks v Goodfellow), lack of compliance with formalities, undue influence, lack of knowledge and approval.

There are also ways of mounting a claim against the estate such as under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, proprietary estoppel.

These are not all the challenges that can be made but are the most popular. With a bit more information, I might be able to be more specific.

[dzug2]

As to 'how', you go to the probate court with your reasons, pay the fee (£400 rings a bell but I could be way out) and see what they say

If you lose, then you may well have to pay the estate's costs as well

As barmaid says there are various possible reasons for contesting. Bear in mind the burden of proof is on you. It's no good saying 'he must have...' - you need witnesses or documents that he was.

I'd guess that the most likely to succeed is being dependent on the deceased.