Law of Wills, 2016A

Example:
Helen, a 78 year old widow, had three children, Clarence, Cody and Cathy. Cathy took Helen to a
lawyer, so that Helen could prepare her will. On the way to the lawyer’s office, the following
conversation occurred:
Helen: “I plan to leave my estate to you and your brothers equally.”
Cathy: “You have to be careful because leaving Cody money will just hurt him.”
Helen: “What are you talking about?”
Cathy: “Cody has been taking drugs for years. The only reason he is sober sometimes is because he
doesn’t have money to buy all of the drugs that he wants.”
Helen: “Are you sure? This is my first time hearing that.”
Cathy: “That’s because everyone is afraid of hurting your feelings.”
Helen: “Thanks for letting me know.”
As a result of the conversation, Helen left the majority of her estate to Clarence and Cathy. She
placed a small amount in trust for Cody. Cathy intentionally lied about Cody having a drug problem.
This is a classic example of fraud in the inducement.
10.3.2 Fraud in the Execution
Fraud in the execution occurs after the contents of the will have already been put in place
and prior to the actual execution of the will. It encompasses cases where the testator is tricked into
executing a document that is not his or her will or one that does not contain his or her expressed
wishes.
Example:
Joseph, an 82 year old widower, had two children, Janice and Benjamin, and two grandchildren by
his daughter Janice, Wayne and Garrett. Joseph had his attorney prepare a will in which he left 25%
of his estate to Janice and 25% to Benjamin. The remaining 50% of the estate was placed in trust for
Wayne and Garrett. Benjamin found a copy of the will on Joseph’s desk. Benjamin felt that, since
Janice’s children were benefitting from the trust, she was entitled to a smaller percentage of the
estate. Joseph had three of his friends come to his house to witness the signing of the will.
Benjamin was present at the ceremony. He gave the will to Joseph for his signature. Joseph and the
witnesses only looked at the signature page of the will. Joseph did not know that Benjamin had
retyped the will, so that he received 50% of the estate, Janice received 25%, and the amount in the
trust for Wayne and Garrett was reduced to 25%. This is a case of fraud in the execution because
Joseph was tricked into signing a will with different terms than the ones he approved.
10.4 Intentional Interference With An Inheritance Expectancy (IIE)
No one has a right to inherit property. The right to dispose of property belongs to the
testator. Thus, a person can legally disinherit any of his or her relatives. Nonetheless, when a person
is prevented from inheriting property because of the actions of a third party, that person may have a
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