Who has access to a Will after someone passes away?
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Who has access to a Will after someone passes away?
My grandfather recently passed away and I called the lawyer that wrote the Will asking to see a copy. He told me he couldn’t talk to me or give me a copy. The last time I saw the Will I was a beneficiary, and if I still am, why would he refuse to talk to me? My family (myself, my wife, and 3 young children) currently live on a mobile home on my grandfather’s property. I’m concerned that if we’re not inheriting the property, we’ll be forced to move while we contest the Will-grandfather had Alzheimer’s and couldn’t have changed it). What are or options just to see the Will so we know?
Asked on May 5, 2011 under Estate Planning, Texas
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
I am so sorry for your loss and for your current situation. I can tell that the way you have written the question you are aware that you can challenge the Will if it was changed while there was a diagnosis of Alzheimer's as your Grandfather would not have had "testamentary capacity" to change the Will. Now, if you are a beneficiary or an "heir at law" then you should be getting notice of the intention to offer the Will for probate and a copy of the Will generally comes with the notification (in some states called a Citation). If you do not then know that when a Will is filed it is a public record and you can see it. It is filed in the county in which your grandfather died at the time of his death. Notice and filing are important because they trigger the time that you have to object to the Will. Good luck.
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