Is It Possible to Change a Will Under Power of Attorney in the Case of Alzheimer's

[jgregory.seattle]

So, I guess, in essence ... If someone coaxes their ailing mother, my grandmother, into changing their will with a little persuasion, even
if they may have already been diagnosed with Alzheimer's ... c'est la vie?? Their is only the expensive process of trying to prove it? i.e. - Subpeona-ing aunts and uncle - who might be more honest about it .. but at the moment, have no reason to be, as they likely got what they wanted out of the deal, to keep their mouths shut? Uncle has severe cerebral palsy .. so he likely knows nothing anyway? His kids obviously got hooked up. ???

[aardvarc]

Legal issues in courts come down to PROOF. Collecting that proof, evaluating that proof, understanding what the court is likely to think about the proof submitted, and actually presenting that proof to the court is what an attorney would need to attempt. Those processes are not quick, and since time is money, they tend to be expensive. Unlike some other types of cases, like personal injury, where an attorney would be willing to work for a percentage of an amount awarded to the plaintiff, in contested probate cases, no such animal.

The uphill problem here is that persuasion isn't problematic. If persuasion crosses into coercion, that's a different matter - but the problem becomes PROVING that issue. Surmizing alone isn't going to get anywhere. With excellent medical documentation of Alzheimer's at the time the will was created, and with witnesses to intimitation, it might go somewhere, WITH the help of an experiienced (ie well paid) attorney.

[jgregory.seattle]

If you don't mind me saying so, this seems rather round-a-bout and arduous even for the law. Um, so are your words here exactly how it works. I would have to prove that she was legally not capable of proving that she was incapable (due to mental illness) of understanding the changes being made? Or would I just need to prove that the changes were in fact made, and that the major effect of them was that my Father's kids were left out of the will, but the rest of the grandchildren remained in it? Or that she was in fact signing a changed will after the diagnoses of Alzheimer's?

But also, my Dad's not stupid, and these things aren't rocket science. He may have made an informal arrangement with his one sibling (that is not handicapped; his other, Uncle Steele, has Cerebral Palsy) to keep the grandchildren's names out of it all together, so as to avoid the appearance of what was being done ... etc. etc. I have sent $20 off for the cupposed only one page copies of both her's and my Grandfather's wills.

What usually goes down in these situations? What do I need to do to fight them? I'm pretty willing to sue them and bring it all out in a lengthy batle even if there isn't much chance of winning. I just want everyone to know. My Dad is such a weasally ****ing sociopathic nerd dick!

[jk]

You need to prove mom was not mentally competent at the time of the change of the will. Having Alzheimer's, in itself, is not enough. It has to have advanced far enough so she was not able to understand what the changes were and what they affected.

You will likely need her doctors testimony regarding her condition. The aunts and uncles would help support a claim of her condition but in themselves generally not adequate to allow the courts to make a determination of her condition.

[jgregory.seattle]

Alright, so let me ask this. If I were able to get my father on the stand and cross-examine him .. and he admits that he changed the will and had her sign, and I can put that together with a timeline of Alzheimer's diagnosis of my Grandmother ... Is that proof enough?

I don't care about the money as much as I do getting him to admit what he did and that so much about all his businesses and the family secrets, and all, are still just lies, etc.

He crossed the line when he then tried to rub it in my face ... after he did all this .. with perfect outcomes for him ... turns out a couple hundred thousand will buy a lot of tight-lipped-ness, even amongst my closest sibling. ... But then he tried to rub it in my fcae in the worst possible way. like "F You, I'm rich, and you are struggling to keep a roof above your head" ... kind of rubbing it in my face. Don't get me wrong, I didn't care, I never liked him. But he's going to get it ....

[legaleye]

Do you currently have a POA in force? If so, was it made when the person was lucid? POAs may only be made for someone that is of "sound mind/body." I believe what you may be searching for is a Guardian of that person and/or estate.

[harrylime]

Alright, so let me ask this. If I were able to get my father on the stand and cross-examine him .. and he admits that he changed the will and had her sign, and I can put that together with a timeline of Alzheimer's diagnosis of my Grandmother ... Is that proof enough?

You may consider this reply rude, mean, nasty... however you wish to characterize it. But you need to be told straight up, no chaser...

Squelch the Perry Mason fantasies. You are not going "to get [your] father on the stand and cross-examine him."

I make no judgement about what did or did not occur here. But I have serious doubts that you will find an attorney that will be willing to take on a case for a probate action that happened 5 or 6 years ago - even if Kentucky law still permits bringing an action.

If you are intent upon pursuing this, I suggest that you get a cashier's check for $10,000, head for Kentucky, request consultations with several local probate/estate attorneys, and wave that check under their noses. You might find one willing to take this on.