Will Contest Drafting

Contest a Will With an Objection or Petition Drafted to Your State's Probate Code

To contest a will, an interested person files a written objection or petition in the probate court claiming the will is invalid for a ground the law recognizes: lack of capacity, undue influence, fraud, improper execution, revocation, or forgery. The filing must arrive inside a short statutory window, and the contestant carries the burden of proving most of those grounds. We draft the objection, the contest petition or complaint, the discovery for medical records and the drafting attorney's file, the petition to admit an earlier will, and the settlement agreement. You, or your counsel, review, sign, and file.

The short answer

In California, object before the will is admitted or petition to revoke probate within 120 days after (Probate Code Section 8270). In Texas, oppose before the court rules or sue within two years after admission (Estates Code Section 256.204). In Florida, object within three months after the notice of administration is served on you (Section 733.212).

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Updated 2026-09-28California, Texas, and Florida statutes checked against the official codes

Prob. 8250 · 8270 · Est. 256.204 · 733.212

Object, revoke probate, subpoena the records, settle

Grounds

How to Contest a Will: The Six Grounds a Probate Court Will Hear

Learning how to contest a will starts with a hard fact: disappointment is not a ground. A parent can leave one child the house and another nothing, and the court will enforce it if the parent had capacity, acted freely, and signed the will the way the statute requires. What the court will hear is a claim that the document is not a valid expression of the testator's wishes. California collects the accepted grounds in Probate Code Section 21310(b), which defines a direct contest as one alleging forgery, lack of due execution, lack of capacity, menace, duress, fraud, or undue influence, revocation, or the disqualification of a beneficiary.

Each ground has its own proof. We plead only the grounds the facts support, because a contest that throws in every ground invites a demurrer and, where a no-contest clause applies, puts the probable-cause question on every claim at once. The cards below show how each ground is framed and what evidence usually carries it.

Ground 01

Lack of testamentary capacity

Cal. Prob. Code 6100.5; Tex. Est. Code 251.001; Fla. Stat. 732.501

The testator could not understand the nature of making a will, recall the nature and situation of their property, or remember and understand their relations to spouse, children, and others affected. California also covers a mental health disorder with delusions or hallucinations that caused the gift.

Proved with: Medical and pharmacy records near the signing date, cognitive testing, care facility notes, and witnesses to daily functioning.

Ground 02

Undue influence

Cal. Prob. Code 6104, 21380; Fla. Stat. 732.5165, 733.107(2)

Someone with access and a relationship of trust substituted their wishes for the testator's. California presumes fraud or undue influence for a gift to the drafter, a fiduciary who transcribed the will, or a care custodian of a dependent adult, and the presumption is conclusive as to the drafter.

Proved with: Who arranged the lawyer, who was in the room, isolation from family, dependence on the beneficiary, and a sudden change from the prior plan.

Ground 03

Fraud, duress, or mistake

Cal. Prob. Code 6104, 8252(a); Fla. Stat. 732.5165

The testator signed because of a lie about a family member or about the document itself, under threat, or by mistake. Florida voids only the part so procured and keeps the rest if it is otherwise valid.

Proved with: The false statement and who made it, the testator's reaction, and a paper trail showing the testator's real belief.

Ground 04

Improper execution

Cal. Prob. Code 6110, 6111; Tex. Est. Code 251.051, 251.052; Fla. Stat. 732.502

The will was not signed and witnessed the way the statute requires, such as two witnesses not present together. California lets the proponent save a defective will with clear and convincing evidence of intent (Section 6110(c)(2)), and handwritten wills follow separate rules.

Proved with: The original will, the self-proving affidavit, witness identities and testimony, and the notary journal.

Ground 05

Revocation

Cal. Prob. Code 6120, 8252(a), 21310(b)(5)

A later will revoked this one expressly or by inconsistency, or the testator burned, tore, canceled, or destroyed it with intent to revoke. The mirror image is a later will that someone suppressed, which is offered by petition for probate.

Proved with: Every will and codicil the testator signed, the drafting attorney's file, and who had custody of the original.

Ground 06

Forgery

Tex. Est. Code 256.204(a); Cal. Prob. Code 21310(b)(1)

The signature is not the testator's. Forgery goes to whether the will was executed at all, which the proponent must prove in California under Section 8252(a). Texas gives two years from discovery of the forgery to sue.

Proved with: Exemplars of the testator's signature from the same period, a forensic document examiner's report, and the witnesses' accounts.

Standing

Who Can Contest a Will, and When You Lose the Right to Try

The answer to who can contest a will is an interested person: someone whose property rights would change if the will fell. California Probate Code Section 48 includes an heir, devisee, child, spouse, creditor, beneficiary, and anyone else with a property right in or claim against the estate that the proceeding may affect. Texas Estates Code Section 22.018 reads almost the same. Florida Section 731.201(23) asks whether the person may reasonably be expected to be affected by the outcome, and excludes a beneficiary who has already received a complete distribution.

Standing has a practical test we apply before drafting: if the court threw this will out, would you receive more? An adult child who would inherit by intestacy qualifies. So does a beneficiary under an earlier will, which is why a contest is often paired with a petition to probate that earlier will. A friend or caregiver with no gift under any version usually does not.

The right can also be lost by conduct. In California, a person who was a party to an earlier contest, or who had actual notice of it in time to join, cannot later petition to revoke probate (Section 8270(a)). In Florida, a person served with formal notice of the petition for administration before letters issue must raise the challenge in that proceeding (Section 733.2123). Florida also bars any contest before the testator dies (Section 732.518).

Deadlines

The Deadline to Contest a Will Is Short: Before Admission, After Admission, and the Hard Cutoffs

The deadline to contest a will is the first thing we check, because a late contest is usually a lost one. Every state gives two chances. The first is before the court admits the will to probate, when you can oppose the petition directly. The second is after admission, for a limited time, by asking the court to revoke the probate it already granted.

In California, a contest before admission is filed as an objection to probate (Probate Code Sections 8004(b) and 8250). After admission, an interested person has 120 days to file a petition to revoke probate (Section 8270), and if nobody contests in time, admission becomes conclusive (Section 8226(a)). Texas lets an interested person file written opposition any time before the court decides the issue (Estates Code Section 55.001) and allows a suit to contest within two years after admission, or two years after discovering a forgery or fraud (Section 256.204). Florida runs from service of the notice of administration: three months to object, extendable only for estoppel based on a misstatement by the personal representative, and never later than one year after service or final discharge, whichever is earlier (Section 733.212(3)).

The will may sit inside a trust plan

Many estates pair a pour-over will with a living trust, and the trust has its own clock. In California, a beneficiary served with the trustee's notification has 120 days from service, or 60 days from delivery of the trust terms within that period, to contest the trust (Probate Code Section 16061.8). We calendar both.

Exceptions exist but are narrow

California lets a person who was a minor or incompetent and had no guardian or conservator petition any time before the order for final distribution (Section 8270(b)). Texas gives an incapacitated person two years after the disability is removed (Section 256.204(b)).

What We Draft

Will Contest Papers We Draft, From the First Objection to the Settlement Agreement

A will contest is a lawsuit inside the probate case, and it moves through the same stages as any civil case: pleading, discovery, motions, trial, or settlement. We draft each stage as its own project or the whole sequence, and every paper cites the code of the state where the estate is being administered. The right column tells you when each paper is the one you need now.

Objection to Probate or Written Opposition

The contest filed before the will is admitted: a California objection to probate under Probate Code Section 8250, or Texas written opposition under Estates Code Section 55.001. It pleads each ground with the supporting facts and asks the court to deny probate in whole or in part.

Use it whenThe petition for probate is on file and the hearing has not happened yet.

Petition to Revoke Probate or Will Contest Complaint

The contest filed after admission: a California petition to revoke probate with written grounds of opposition (Section 8270), a Texas suit to contest the will's validity (Section 256.204), or a Florida petition for revocation of probate (Section 733.109).

Use it whenThe will is already admitted and the statutory window is still open.

Discovery for Medical Records and the Drafting Attorney's File

Subpoenas, document requests, interrogatories, and deposition outlines aimed at the evidence that decides capacity and undue influence. Texas entitles a will contest party to the decedent's medical records (Section 55.101), and California removes the attorney-client privilege for communications relevant to a dispute among parties claiming through the deceased client (Evidence Code Section 957).

Use it whenThe contest is on file and the other side controls the key records.

Petition to Admit an Earlier Will

If the later will falls, something must take its place. We draft the petition for probate of the prior will, or the Texas second application the court hears with the first (Estates Code Sections 256.101 and 256.102), so the estate passes under the plan you are defending.

Use it whenAn earlier will named you and the later one cut you out.

Declarations, Exhibit Index, and Opposition to Demurrer

Sworn declarations from family, caregivers, and witnesses, a clean exhibit index, and the response when the proponent attacks the pleading. California allows a demurrer to an objection, with leave to amend within 15 days if it is sustained (Section 8251(b)).

Use it whenThe proponent has answered or demurred and the record needs building.

Settlement Agreement and Release

Most will contests settle. We draft the settlement agreement that divides the estate, releases the claims, deals with any no-contest clause, and sets out the order the parties will ask the court to approve.

Use it whenThe parties are talking and need terms that hold.

Send Us the Will and the Probate PetitionNeed a different probate or civil filing? Custom court document drafting.

Burden of Proof

What You Must Prove When You Contest a Will, and What the Other Side Must Prove

The burden of proof in a will contest is split, and our drafts are built around that split. The person offering the will proves due execution. The contestant proves the rest. California Probate Code Section 8252(a) says so in one sentence: proponents carry due execution, and contestants carry lack of testamentary intent or capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, mistake, or revocation. At trial, each subscribing witness is produced if available (Section 8253), and the court decides every contested fact that affects validity (Section 8252(b)).

Florida Section 733.107(1) lets a self-proving affidavit make the proponent's prima facie case, then shifts the burden to the contestant. Texas puts more on the applicant: under Estates Code Section 256.152, the applicant must prove the will was not revoked and, if it is not self-proved, that it was properly executed and the testator was of sound mind.

When the burden flips: presumed undue influence

California Probate Code Section 21380 presumes that a gift is the product of fraud or undue influence when it goes to the person who drafted the will, to a fiduciary who transcribed it, to a care custodian of a dependent adult during the care period or within 90 days of it, or to certain relatives, cohabitants, and employees of those people. The beneficiary must rebut the presumption by clear and convincing evidence, and as to the drafter the presumption is conclusive. A beneficiary who fails to rebut it bears the costs of the proceeding, including reasonable attorney's fees (Section 21380(d)). In Florida, where the presumption of undue influence applies, it shifts the burden of proof (Section 733.107(2)). If the facts fit, we plead the presumption first, because it changes who has to win the argument.

No-Contest Clauses

Will a No-Contest Clause Cost You Your Inheritance if You Object?

A no-contest clause, also called an in terrorem or forfeiture clause, says a beneficiary who challenges the will loses the gift it makes. It matters only to a contestant the will gives something to. If the will leaves you nothing, there is nothing to forfeit.

California enforces the clause against a direct contest only when it is brought without probable cause(Probate Code Section 21311(a)(1)). Probable cause exists if the facts known when you file would cause a reasonable person to believe there is a reasonable likelihood the relief will be granted after further investigation or discovery (Section 21311(b)). The rule covers instruments that became irrevocable on or after January 1, 2001 (Section 21315).

Texas enforces a forfeiture clause unless the contestant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that just cause existed and that the action was brought and maintained in good faith (Estates Code Section 254.005(a)). Florida goes furthest: a will provision that penalizes an interested person for contesting it is unenforceable (Section 732.517).

Because the clause turns on what you knew when you filed, we build the record of probable cause into the pleading itself, with specific facts and the documents behind them. Where the risk is real, we tell you before you file, and we draft a narrower contest that challenges only what the evidence supports.

State Law Side by Side

Contesting a Will in California, Texas, and Florida Compared

The state where the estate is administered decides the form of the contest, the deadline, and who proves what. The table is the frame our drafters start from. An estate in another state is drafted to that state's probate code, confirmed before any work begins.

Issue	California (Probate Code)	Texas (Estates Code)	Florida (Ch. 731 to 733)
Who may contest	Interested person: heir, devisee, child, spouse, creditor, beneficiary, or anyone whose property right or claim the proceeding may affect (Prob. Code 48)	Interested person: heir, devisee, spouse, creditor, or anyone with a property right in or claim against the estate (Est. Code 22.018)	Interested person: anyone reasonably expected to be affected by the outcome; not a beneficiary already fully paid (731.201(23))
Contest before the will is admitted	Objection to probate; summons issues and responses are due in 30 days (8004(b), 8250)	Written opposition any time before the court decides the issue (55.001)	A person served with formal notice before letters must object in that proceeding (733.2123)
Contest after admission	Petition to revoke probate within 120 days of admission; later for a minor or incompetent without a guardian, until final distribution (8270)	Suit within 2 years of admission; forgery or fraud, 2 years from discovery; incapacitated person, 2 years after disabilities removed (256.204)	Petition for revocation of probate before final discharge (733.109), within 3 months of service of the notice of administration, 1 year outside limit (733.212(3))
Burden of proof	Proponent proves due execution; contestant proves lack of capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, mistake, or revocation (8252(a))	Applicant must prove the will was not revoked and, if not self-proved, due execution and sound mind (256.152)	Proponent makes a prima facie case of execution; then the contestant proves the grounds; undue influence presumption shifts the burden (733.107)
Presumption of undue influence	By statute for gifts to the drafter, a fiduciary transcriber, a care custodian of a dependent adult, and their relatives (21380)	None created by the Estates Code sections cited here; undue influence is proved from the evidence	Where it applies, it shifts the burden of proof (733.107(2))
No-contest clause	Enforced only against a direct contest brought without probable cause (21311); instruments irrevocable on or after Jan. 1, 2001 (21315)	Enforced unless just cause and good faith are shown by a preponderance (254.005)	Unenforceable (732.517)
Who decides	The court tries every contested fact affecting validity (8252(b))	A party is entitled to a jury in a contested probate proceeding (55.002)	The circuit court sitting in probate (731.201(7))

Texas also has a four-year limit for admitting a will to probate at all, unless the applicant was not in default (Estates Code Section 256.003), which matters when you want an earlier will admitted in place of the one being contested.

A probate hearing on the calendar, or a notice with a date on it?

Send the will, the probate papers, and the date you were served. We return scope and a delivery date in one business day, set against your deadline and drafted to your state's code.

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Evidence

Evidence to Gather Before We Draft Your Will Contest, and What Discovery Can Reach

You do not need every item to start. Send what you have and we will tell you what is missing and which discovery tool can reach it. Upload everything through the secure matter portal, never as email attachments.

1A copy of the will being offered, every codicil, and every earlier will you know of, with dates.
2The petition for probate or application, the case number, and the hearing date if one is set.
3Any notice you received (notice of petition, notice of administration) and the date it was served on you.
4The death certificate, and the testator's diagnoses, medications, and care setting around the date the will was signed.
5Names of the doctors, hospitals, care facilities, and home care agencies that treated the testator in the final years.
6The name of the lawyer or service that prepared the will, and who contacted them and drove the testator to the signing.
7Names and contact details of the witnesses and notary, if they appear on the will.
8Texts, emails, letters, and cards that show the testator's relationships, wishes, and any isolation from family.
9Bank statements or records of large transfers, new joint accounts, or changed beneficiaries near the signing date.
10A family tree with the names and addresses of every heir and every beneficiary under each will.

Two sources decide most capacity and undue influence cases: the medical chart and the drafting attorney's file. Texas makes the chart reachable by statute. A party to a will contest that turns on the decedent's capacity is entitled to all communications and records relevant to the decedent's condition before death (Estates Code Section 55.101), and a provider served with a subpoena and a file-stamped copy of the contest must release them without further authorization (Section 55.102). We draft that subpoena package.

The lawyer who prepared the will often knows who made the appointment, who attended the meetings, and what the testator said about the family. In California there is no attorney-client privilege for a communication relevant to an issue between parties who all claim through the deceased client (Evidence Code Section 957), so the file and the lawyer's testimony are usually in play. We draft the deposition subpoena for records, the questions for the drafting attorney, and the requests to the proponent. For heavy record review or deposition summaries once the case is contested, see probate litigation support.

How It Works

How We Draft Your Will Contest, and Who Signs and Files It

Legal Tank is a drafting service, not a law firm. We serve self-represented heirs who want filing-ready papers and attorneys who want the objection, declarations, and discovery built for their review. Either way, the person whose name is on the caption decides what to file and signs it.

You send the will, the case papers, and the dates

Upload the will, any earlier will, the probate petition, and any notice you received through the secure matter portal. We confirm which state's code governs and which deadline is running.

We match facts to grounds and flag the clause

We sort what you know into the grounds the statute recognizes, identify the evidence still missing, and read any no-contest clause against your state's enforcement test before anything is drafted.

We return scope and a delivery date in one business day

A written scope lists each paper: the objection or petition, declarations, discovery, and a proposed order. The delivery date is set against your filing deadline, not ours.

We draft, you review, we revise

The draft cites the governing statute for each ground and pleads facts, not adjectives. You read it, mark what is wrong, and we revise until it says what happened.

You or your counsel sign and file

The papers are ready to sign, verify, file, and serve. Discovery and settlement papers follow as the case moves.

Legal Tank

Reads every will, codicil, and probate paper you send.
Matches the facts to the grounds the governing code recognizes.
Drafts the objection or petition, declarations, exhibits, and proposed order.
Drafts discovery, subpoenas, and the settlement agreement.

You or your counsel

Decide the strategy and whether to file.
Review, sign, and verify the pleading.
File with the court, pay the filing fee, and serve the summons.
Appear at hearings, depositions, and trial.

When the dispute is about more than the will itself

When the estate poured into a trust

If the will is valid but the successor trustee is not accounting or distributing, the fight is over conduct, not validity. See removing a trustee who will not account.

When siblings inherit the house together

If the contest settles or fails and several heirs end up on title who cannot agree to sell, the next paper is a partition complaint for inherited property.

When a deed was signed in the same period

If the same person also took real property by deed while the testator was failing, the will contest does not reach it. A quiet title complaint can.

Writing a will so it holds up rather than challenging one? See will preparation or the last will and testament template. If there is no valid will and you need to prove who the heirs are, see the affidavit of heirship. If the probate court has already ruled against you, see appellate brief drafting.

FAQ

Questions Heirs Ask Before They Contest a Will

What are the grounds to contest a will?

The grounds courts accept are narrow: the testator lacked the mental capacity to make a will; the will was procured by undue influence, fraud, duress, or mistake; the will was not signed and witnessed as the statute requires; the testator revoked it; or the signature is forged. California Probate Code Section 21310(b) lists the same set when it defines a direct contest, and adds the disqualification of a beneficiary under Section 21380. Unfairness alone is not a ground. A parent may leave a child less, or nothing, if the parent had capacity and acted freely, so the objection has to tie specific facts to one of these grounds.

How long do you have to contest a will?

It depends on the state and on whether the will has been admitted to probate yet. In California you can object before admission, and after admission an interested person has 120 days to petition to revoke probate (Probate Code Section 8270). In Texas you can oppose the application before the court rules, and after admission you have two years to sue, or two years from discovering forgery or fraud (Estates Code Section 256.204). In Florida the objection is due three months after the notice of administration is served on you, and never later than one year after service or final discharge, whichever comes first (Section 733.212(3)). Missing the date usually ends the contest.

Who can contest a will?

Only a person with a financial stake in the outcome, called an interested person. California defines the term to include an heir, devisee, child, spouse, creditor, beneficiary, and anyone with a property right in or claim against the estate that the proceeding may affect (Probate Code Section 48). Texas uses a similar definition in Estates Code Section 22.018, and Florida defines an interested person as anyone who may reasonably be expected to be affected by the outcome (Section 731.201(23)). In practice the contestant is usually an heir who would inherit if the will fell, or a beneficiary under an earlier will who was cut out or cut down by the later one.

Who has the burden of proof in a will contest?

The work is split. The person offering the will must prove it was properly signed and witnessed, and a self-proving affidavit often satisfies that. The contestant must then prove the ground for the challenge. California Probate Code Section 8252(a) puts lack of capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, mistake, and revocation on the contestant. Florida Section 733.107 works the same way, and adds that where a presumption of undue influence arises, it shifts the burden of proof. In California a gift to the person who drafted the will, or to a care custodian of a dependent adult, is presumed to be the product of fraud or undue influence under Section 21380.

Can a no-contest clause stop me from contesting a will?

Not always. Florida refuses to enforce them at all: a will provision that penalizes a person for contesting it is unenforceable under Section 732.517. California enforces a no-contest clause against a direct contest only if the contest was brought without probable cause, meaning the facts known at filing would not lead a reasonable person to believe there was a reasonable likelihood of success (Probate Code Section 21311). Texas enforces a forfeiture clause unless the contestant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that there was just cause for the action and that it was brought and maintained in good faith (Estates Code Section 254.005). We read the clause before we draft a word.

Can you contest a will without a lawyer?

Yes. A person can file an objection or contest on their own behalf, and many people who send us a matter are self-represented heirs. We draft the objection or petition, the supporting declarations, the discovery requests and subpoenas, and the proposed order, and the papers return to you to review, sign, and file yourself. We never sign, file, appear, or argue for you. A will contest is a trial on disputed facts, often against an estate whose lawyer is paid from estate funds, so read every page of the draft closely and consider having counsel review it before you file.

What happens if you contest a will and lose?

The will stands and the estate is distributed under it. You bear your own costs, and in some situations you can lose more. If the will has an enforceable no-contest clause, a contest that fails the state's test can forfeit what the will gave you. California enforces the clause only against a direct contest brought without probable cause (Section 21311), and Texas only where the contestant cannot show just cause and good faith (Section 254.005). In California, a beneficiary who fails to rebut the Section 21380 presumption bears the costs of that proceeding, including reasonable attorney's fees, which cuts the other way. A settlement agreement is often the outcome that protects both sides.

This page explains the statutes and what we draft. It is not legal advice about your case, and Legal Tank does not represent you in court.

Ready When You Are

Get the Objection Drafted Before the Window Closes

Send the will, the probate papers, the date you were served, and what you believe went wrong, and we will scope every paper you need to contest a will in your state. We return scope and a delivery date in one business day, and the draft comes back for you or your counsel to sign and file.

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