Undue Influence on Wills in Nevada
In Nevada, you can make a last will and testament if you meet the state legal requirement of being an adult of sound mind. If, when making the will, you were under coercion or otherwise unduly influenced by someone else, your will is not valid. Determining undue influence in a will is often complicated, so talk to a Nevada attorney if you need legal advice about such an issue.
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Competency
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When undue influence is alleged in a Nevada will case, it calls into question the competency of the testator and his ability to make a valid last will and testament. To make a valid last will and testament, a person must be of sound mind and be competent to manage his own property and make his own decisions. Nevada Revised Statutes section 159.059 states that a person can be considered incompetent for several reasons, including "weakness of mind," which can lead to undue influence and rob a person of legal capacity.
Presumptions
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Certain relationships cause the court to presume that undue influence exists when they are present in the creation of a will. If the will was created involving a testator and a fiduciary, a person granted the testator's trust and who has a legal obligation to look after the testator's best interests, and the fiduciary stands to benefit from the will, the court will presume that undue influence was present. That part of the will, or the entire will itself, may then be invalid.
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Validity
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A will written by a testator who was under undue influence at the time of creation is generally considered invalid. If the person making the will is unable to resist when someone tries to exert influence, this calls into question the will's validity. When the terms of the will benefit the person exerting the influence, a court is likely to declare the will void.
Intestacy
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If a will is found to be invalid because the testator was under undue influence during its creation, the court can use a previously made will as the testator's last will and testament. If no such will exists, however, the estate will be distributed according to Nevada's laws of intestate succession. For example, Nevada Revised Statutes section 134.050 states that if you die without a valid will and leave behind a spouse and two surviving parents, your spouse gets half of your estate and the parents each get 25 percent.
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