Many members of the next generation bank on a sizable inheritance as part of an unprecedented intergenerational wealth transfer occurring in the United States right now. However, research shows a growing disconnect between how much children expect to receive and how much their parents plan on leaving them. Discover you were left off of your parent’s will? This is a scary estate story, indeed.
Your parents do not face an obligation to include you in their state plan. As such, you usually cannot challenge their will or trust in court just because you think it was unfair. However, if you believe something nefarious happened, such as somebody taking advantage of a parent and convincing them to change their estate plan, you should speak up.
Scary State Stories: The Great Wealth Transfer and Resetting Inheritance Expectations
Tens of trillions of dollars will pass from older Americans to younger Americans over the next two decades. Financial experts refer to this as “The Great Wealth Transfer.”
More than half of millennials say they expect to inherit approximately $350,000 or more from their aging parents. But baby boomers say they plan to leave far less than that to their kids. One survey found that many do not plan to leave behind any money. In another study, just 26 percent of Americans, including 22 percent of baby boomers, said they expect to leave an inheritance
Part of this disconnect is that parents are not communicating with their family about their inheritances—or lack thereof. Research from Edward Jones indicates that more than a third of Americans do not plan to discuss wealth transfers with their family.
Federal Reserve data shows that the probability of inheriting from anyone, at any age, is just 7.4 percent. The chance of inheriting from a parent is even lower—just 4.6 percent.
Dealing with the Disappointment of Disinheritance: Scary Estate Stories
You learned that you were left out of your parents’ estate plan. Now what?
Know Your Rights
In most cases, adult children are not entitled to inherit their parents’ money and property under the terms of their parents’ estate plan. You may, however, have the right to receive a copy of their will if they have one. If they used a trust to manage their assets, it may be more difficult for you to get a copy if you were not a named trust beneficiary. This is one of our examples of scary estate stories.
If the will or trust contains language that clearly, directly, or explicitly disinherits you, you may not be able to contest it, absent some additional factors.
If the will or trust contains no such language, the court might presume that you were inadvertently left out and allow you to contest it.
You might also be able to dispute a parent’s will or trust in the following situations:
Do you suspect that they were not of sound mind when drafting their will or trust?
You have reason to believe they made their will or trust under duress or undue influence.
A factual error could leave you out of the will or trust. For example, a parent disinherited you under the erroneous belief that you were abusing drugs or alcohol, and you can prove that you were or are sober.
Ask Questions
Before seriously considering a will or trust contest—which could be a long, expensive, and ultimately fruitless undertaking—it may be worth asking a few questions to put things into perspective:
Did your parents discuss their estate plan with you?
If they said you were going to receive something and you did not, this could be an issue.
They may have prioritized giving gifts while living and considered those gifts to be your inheritance, such as helping you with a big purchase like a home or taking you on a vacation.
They might have said that they were disinheriting you or leaving you nothing, in which case the outcome is predictable and not necessarily a cause for alarm.
Did they stay quiet about inheritance issues?
Some parents find it uncomfortable to discuss inheritance and wealth transfer matters with their children, and many avoid the subject altogether.
If you do not know what their wishes were, it may be harder to argue that you were supposed to receive something.
What was their financial and health situation?
Longevity and lifestyle changes are altering inheritance plans. People are living longer today than in previous generations and often spend much of their wealth during these additional years of life. Health-related and long-term care expenses can deplete a lifetime of savings and leave little or no money for inheritance.
If your parents lived an active lifestyle with lots of travel, entertainment, dining out, and the purchase of big-ticket items, they may have spent your would-be inheritance on themselves.
If they were in poor health at the end of their life, they may have had to spend down their savings to qualify for Medicaid to cover long-term care.
Did someone else receive the money?
Assuming your parents died owning a decent amount of wealth, and depending on who ended up inheriting from them, finding answers to questions about your disinheritance can become more complicated.
Money left to a sibling or another family member who was in greater financial need than you could explain why you were omitted.
Money left to a charity might explain your omission if the cause was near and dear to them for many years.
Red Flags in Scary Estate Stories
Try to get a copy of your parents’ will or trust so you can find out who inherited from them and whether there were any recent changes to their estate plan. This information could raise red flags that warrant further investigation. For example:
They left the money to a charity, religious organization, or other group with which they only recently became involved.
They left everything, or at least a considerable amount, to a caregiver you do not know well and who does not have a history with the family.
A parent was in poor health and could have been easily exploited by a caregiver or somebody else who convinced them to change their will or trust at the end of their life. These are scary estate stories.
There was a recent change to the estate plan—in particular a change that is difficult to explain.
You may not need to request a copy of a will from a family member if the estate was subject to probate. Probated wills become public court records that anyone can view in their entirety. The public records in a probate matter also contain information about what assets were part of the estate and who the beneficiaries are. You should be able to see who inherited what and how much they inherited. The records also identify the executor of the estate, who may be able to provide further insights.
About Skvarna Law Firm in Glendora and Upland, California
Skvarna Law Firm operates offices in Glendora and Upland, California. We provide legal services. We cover San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties. This includes several cities. Upland, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, Colton, Rialto, Chino, Chino Hills, Glendora, Claremont, Pomona, La Verne, Montclair, San Dimas, Azusa, Covina, West Covina, Diamond Bar, Walnut, La Puente, Corona, Norco & Mira Loma. Visit SkvarnaLaw.com to learn more.
