Estate and Trust Litigation Attorneys
Estate and trust litigation resolves disputes involving estates, trusts, and guardianships. It includes challenges to the validity of a will or trust, claims that an executor or trustee has mismanaged property, disputes about what a document means, disputes over who should care for an incapacitated relative, and actions to recover money or property taken from someone who could not protect it.
Milvidskiy Law Group P.C. represents beneficiaries, heirs, executors, trustees, guardians, and the adults at the center of guardianship cases in the New York Surrogate’s and Supreme Courts, the New Jersey Superior Court, Chancery Division, Probate Part, and the Connecticut Probate and Superior Courts. Our attorneys also draft wills and trusts, administer estates, and serve as fiduciaries, which gives us a working knowledge of both sides of every dispute we handle: how the document should have been prepared, and how the administration should have been run.
The sections below describe common disputes and link to more detailed information about the grounds, procedures, evidence, and deadlines.
Key Takeaways:
- Most estate disputes fall into three groups: challenges to the validity of a document, claims against a fiduciary’s administration, and contests over who should control an incapacitated person’s affairs. Each has its own grounds, procedure, and deadlines.
- Deadlines are short and differ by state. Some windows close within weeks or months after a will is admitted or a decree is entered, and a claim that is not raised in the right proceeding is usually lost.
- Most cases settle, and the strongest settlements are built on the evidence a trial would have used. We prepare every matter as if it will be tried and resolve it by agreement wherever an agreement serves the client better.
Challenges to Wills and Trusts
A will or trust can be set aside only on recognized grounds: the signer lacked the required capacity, was subjected to undue influence, fraud, or duress, did not sign with the formalities the state requires, or revoked the document, or the document is a forgery. Unfairness alone is not a ground. Standing belongs to the people whose inheritance would change if the document fails, and the procedure runs through the probate proceeding, whose deadlines can be a matter of months. Procedures for will contests differ by state, including New York’s preliminary examinations, New Jersey’s caveat and four-month window, and Connecticut’s Probate Court hearing and appeal.
Undue influence is pressure that overcame the signer’s free will, proven almost always by circumstances: a confidential relationship, the beneficiary’s involvement in the document, the signer’s isolation, and a result that departs from earlier plans. Lack of testamentary capacity asks whether the signer understood, at the moment of signing, what a will does, what they owned, and who their family was; the standard is lower than most people expect and is decided on the records closest to the signing. The same doctrines reach revocable trusts, deeds, joint accounts, and beneficiary designations, which pass outside the will and can move most of an estate.
Claims Against Executors, Trustees, and Agents
Every fiduciary owes duties of loyalty, prudence, impartiality, and disclosure, and must follow the will, trust, or court order that created the role. A beneficiary who cannot get information can compel an accounting; a beneficiary who receives one can object to specific transactions; and a fiduciary who breached the duties can be surcharged for the loss, denied commissions, and removed. Fiduciaries can defend their administration and obtain a court’s approval that ends their exposure. Fiduciary litigation may involve challenges to an estate accounting or requests for trustee replacement under the instrument or by court order.
Trust Disputes
Trusts generate disputes of their own. Beneficiaries and trustees disagree about what a provision means, whether a distribution should be made, whether the trust can be modified or terminated, and whether a trustee’s decanting or investment decision was within the trustee’s authority. Many of these are resolved by construction proceedings, consent modifications, or petitions for instructions rather than by trial. Available options include trust modification, trust decanting, and trust termination. Careful record-keeping and communication during trust administration can prevent many of these disputes.
Contested Guardianships and Conservatorships
When relatives disagree about whether an adult needs a guardian, who should serve, or what the guardian may decide, the protective proceeding becomes litigation. The petitioner must prove incapacity by clear and convincing evidence, the court chooses the guardian on the adult’s interests rather than on who filed first, and a candidate’s financial dealings with the adult are often what decide the case. We represent petitioners, objecting relatives, and cross-petitioners in contested guardianship proceedings, provide guardianship defense for the adult named in the petition, and handle conservatorship proceedings under Connecticut’s framework.
Financial Exploitation and Recovery of Assets
Many estate disputes begin before death, when a relative discovers that an aging parent has signed a deed, added someone to an account, or changed a beneficiary designation. Civil remedies can stop an ongoing loss and recover property that still exists: revocation of a power of attorney, holds on accounts, guardianship, turnover proceedings, actions to set aside transfers, compelled accountings from agents, and constructive trusts. Evidence developed in addressing elder abuse and financial exploitation often decides the will contest that follows.
How We Handle a Dispute
- Early assessment. Standing, grounds, deadlines, the effect of any no-contest clause, the cost relative to the amount at stake, and a recommendation on whether to proceed and how.
- The record. Medical records, the drafting attorney’s file, financial statements, earlier documents, and witness accounts, gathered before positions harden.
- The right proceeding. Objections, caveats, complaints, petitions to compel or remove, and cross-petitions, filed in the correct court within the applicable period.
- Discovery and trial. Examinations of witnesses and the drafter, forensic accounting where warranted, expert witnesses on capacity or handwriting, and trial where the case cannot be resolved.
- Resolution. Negotiation, mediation, and other forms of alternative dispute resolution, with settlements structured to address the tax, Medicaid, and family consequences a judgment would ignore.
- Neutral service. Where the family needs someone with no stake, our professional fiduciary services include serving as successor executor, trustee, or guardian.
Deadlines
The periods are short and differ by state and by the type of claim. Objections to a will in New York are due by the return date of the citation or shortly after preliminary examinations end. A New Jersey complaint to set aside a will the Surrogate has admitted must generally be filed within four months after probate, or six months for a challenger living out of state. A Connecticut appeal from a Probate Court decree generally must be filed within thirty days after the court sent it, or forty-five days in conservatorship matters. Objections to an accounting must be raised in the accounting proceeding. Claims against fiduciaries, and to set aside lifetime transfers, carry their own limitation periods. Whatever the dispute, the calendar should be reviewed at the first meeting.
When Litigation Is Not the Right Path
A will contest requires recognized legal grounds, and delay alone is not a breach of fiduciary duty. Disagreements about who should serve as guardian may be more cost-effective to resolve through negotiation. A dispute about what a document means is a construction question rather than a contest, and a concern about how an estate is being run is often answered by a demand for information before any petition is filed. We assess which of these applies before recommending a proceeding, because litigation is paid for by the estate or by the adult whose affairs are in dispute, and a case filed without grounds costs the client money that would otherwise have been theirs.
Schedule an Estate and Trust Litigation Consultation
If you have been left out of a will you believe is invalid, cannot get answers from an executor or trustee, are defending your own administration, or are facing a guardianship dispute, bring the documents, any earlier versions, and a timeline of what happened. A prompt review allows us to identify the deadlines that apply to your matter. Our attorneys practice in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Contact Milvidskiy Law Group P.C. to schedule a consultation.
This page is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws differ by state and change over time. For advice about your situation, consult a qualified attorney.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is estate and trust litigation?
It is the group of court proceedings that resolve disputes over an estate, a trust, or a guardianship: challenges to the validity of a will or trust, claims that an executor or trustee mismanaged property, disputes about what a document means, contests over who should control an incapacitated adult’s affairs, and actions to recover property taken from someone who could not protect it.
On what grounds can a will or trust be challenged?
Lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, failure to follow the state’s signing formalities, forgery, and revocation. Believing the document is unfair is not a ground. Only a person whose inheritance would change if the document fails has standing to challenge it.
How long do I have to contest a will?
It depends on the state. New York objections are due by the return date of the probate citation or shortly after preliminary examinations end. A New Jersey complaint to set aside probate must generally be filed within four months after probate, or six months for an out-of-state challenger. A Connecticut appeal from the Probate Court’s decree generally must be filed within thirty days after the court sent it. Once the window closes, the challenge is usually lost.
What can I do if an executor or trustee will not give me information?
Petition the court to compel an accounting. In each of our states a beneficiary, and in some cases a creditor, co-fiduciary, or surety, may ask the court to order the fiduciary to account. A fiduciary who ignores the court’s citation can be suspended and replaced, and the accounting that follows is where objections to specific transactions are raised.
Can an executor or trustee be removed?
Yes, on grounds set by statute in each state, including wasting or misapplying assets, dishonesty, disobeying court orders, failing to account when directed, incapacity, unfitness, and co-fiduciaries who cannot work together. Connecticut and New Jersey also allow removal on a substantial change of circumstances or at the request of all beneficiaries where a suitable successor is available. Delay alone is not usually enough.
What is undue influence?
Pressure that overcomes a person’s free will so that a will, trust, deed, or beneficiary designation reflects someone else’s wishes. It is proven by circumstances: a confidential relationship, the beneficiary’s involvement in the document, the signer’s isolation or dependence, secrecy, and a result that departs from earlier plans. A person with full capacity can be unduly influenced.
Does a dementia diagnosis mean a will is invalid?
No. Testamentary capacity is judged at the moment of signing, and a person with dementia may have the required understanding on a given day. The diagnosis is evidence that a court weighs with the medical records, the drafting attorney’s file, and the witnesses’ accounts from the time of signing.
What happens when family members disagree about a guardianship?
The proceeding becomes contested. The petitioner must prove incapacity by clear and convincing evidence, relatives may object or file competing petitions, and the court chooses the guardian on the adult’s interests, weighing each candidate’s relationship with the adult, conflicts, and financial dealings. Most contested guardianships settle on a limited order, often with a neutral professional in one role.
Do most estate disputes go to trial?
No. Most settle, often after the early examinations or discovery show both sides the strength of the evidence. Courts encourage mediation of estate disputes, and a settlement can address tax, Medicaid, and family consequences that a judgment would not. A case that cannot be settled is tried in the Surrogate’s Court, the Superior Court, or the Probate Court, depending on the state.
Do you represent executors and trustees who are being sued?
Yes. We reconstruct the records, prepare and settle the accounting, defend objections and removal petitions, and negotiate releases. Because our attorneys also administer estates and trusts, we know what a properly run administration looks like and how to present one.
