Law Office of Donald D. Vanarelli Blog

After an individual’s death, litigation regarding the decedent’s estate can arise in a variety of contexts. A common claim asserted in a lawsuit challenging the validity of a decedent’s Last Will and Testament is that the will was the result of “Undue Influence.” “Undue Influence” is defined by our courts as “’mental, moral or physical’ [...]

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After an individual’s death, litigation regarding the decedent’s estate can arise in a variety of contexts. A common claim asserted in an estate litigation is that the decedent lacked “testamentary capacity” (the capacity to make a will). An individual’s mental capacity is judged based upon the transaction or act that the person is undertaking. One [...]

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In a contested guardianship, the guardianship applicant often wishes to pursue additional claims involving the validity of  a Last Will and Testament or other estate documents purportedly executed by the alleged incapacitated person at or before the time the guardianship action was filed. In such cases, plaintiffs often claim that the Last Will and Testament [...]

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When a party believes that the decedent’s estate was depleted prior to his or her death as a result of gifts allegedly made by the decedent, an improvident gift claim may be asserted. In contrast to testamentary dispositions, in which both a confidential relationship and suspicious circumstances are required to raise a presumption of undue [...]

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Earlier this month, Hon. Robert P. Contillo, Presiding Judge of the Chancery Division, Bergen County, New Jersey, set aside a decedent’s Last Will and Testament, ruling that the Will was the result of undue influence by one of her adult children who was the principal beneficiary of the will. In doing so, Judge Contillo made [...]

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In Estate of Mendonca v. DaSilva, Docket No. A3515-11T2 (App. Div. Feb. 22, 2013), the decedent, Ricardo Mendonca died intestate as a result of an automobile accident. His only heir was his minor son, who lived with his mother in Brazil. Unbeknownst to the minor child’s mother, the decedent’s other family members had filed a [...]

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In Stephenson, Personal Representative of Estate of Murry v. Spiegle, Docket No. A-4193-11T2 (App.Div., January 31, 2013), the decedent executed a Last Will and Testament leaving his estate to family members or trusts for family members. The will was prepared by his attorney, William E. Spiegle, III, Esq. Less than two months later, the decedent [...]

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In a November 5, 2010 blog post, I discussed the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division decision in Matter of Sand, Docket No. A-1856-08T1 (App. Div., November 1, 2010). In that case, the appellate court affirmed the trial court’s ruling that the decedent’s daughter’s attempt to set aside her mother’s will, claiming undue influence [...]

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In my January 20 blog post, I discussed the time limits imposed under R. 4:85-1 of the New Jersey Court Rules for filing challenges to the probate of a will. In an Appellate Division case decided on January 18, 2013, the effect of an administrator’s fraud on those time limits was addressed, in Matter of [...]

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Below, courtesy of the ElderLawAnswers website, is the annual roundup of the top 12 elder law decisions decided by federal and state courts in 2012. The cases were selected based upon readership as measured by the number of readers who “clicked through” to the full story in the website’s Weekly and Monthly e-letters. Links in [...]

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