In order to challenge the validity of a will, one would need to prove that a family member would not have made the will without the pressure from a coercive party.
Coercion amounting to undue influence can be difficult to establish, as it is in the nature of undue influence that it takes place behind closed doors when no one else is watching and usually by someone in a position of trust. Coercion is more than persuasion and persuasion itself is not unlawful. It usually involves threats or pressure of some description, such as the withdrawal of care or support.
Demonstrating that the family member who wrote the will was vulnerable or may have lacked capacity to make the new will, and the change was inconsistent with longstanding wishes, may prove that a new will was created under undue influence.
The absence of a solicitor in the writing up of the new will would be an additional cause for concern.
Lucinda Brown, Partner in our contentious probate team, discusses the ways in which one is able to challenge a relative’s will on the grounds of undue influence from a family member, amounting from coercion, in an article for the Financial Times.
