Wills
made near the end of life can be subject to a challenge in probate where a
person that would otherwise have been an heir under the law is excluded by the will. One of the forms of such a challenge is based
on allegations that persons who have been elevated to the status as
beneficiaries under a will exercised undue influence over the testator. Upon a showing of undue influence, a will can
be invalidated. The result is that the
testator would then be deemed to have died without a will, or with a prior will
in place. If the testator dies without a
will, then the laws of intestate succession would determine the heirs to estate
and not the will. Accordingly, the
theory of undue influence is a means by which an heir at law, excluded from a
will, can invalidate the will and assume his place as a beneficiary.
In the
Georgia Supreme Court opinion in Davidson v. Hines, Appeal Case No. S12A0405 (July 2, 2012), the Court recently
upheld a decision of a Georgia trial court that submitted the issue of undue
influence to a jury to decide as the finder of fact. The Court made various findings in the
opinion indicating that the facts and circumstances surrounding execution of
the will were sufficient to meet the criteria for a jury finding of undue
influence.
