Undue influence
Estate planning practitioners describe undue influence as severe pressure that causes an elder to replace their own intent with that of the wrongdoer. Elements differ by state. Florida commentary, a New York court decision, New York commentary, and a Wisconsin Supreme Court decision each name different elements or tests for proving it.
How it works
Undue influence is a ground on which a will or similar document can be questioned because the person who made it acted under pressure from someone else.
Practitioners writing on New York claims add a standard of proof.
Where it shows up for owners of businesses, real estate and private investments
Wisconsin law supplies a two-prong test. A Wisconsin Supreme Court decision allows undue influence to be proven through a confidential relationship between the testator and the favored beneficiary, plus suspicious circumstances surrounding the will's making.
Practitioners in Florida point to three elements for a presumption of undue influence. Those elements are substantial benefit, a confidential relationship, and active procurement.
A document that passes a business, a rental property, or an investment interest to one beneficiary is tested the same way as any other. The favored beneficiary, the relationship with the testator, and the circumstances in which the document was made are the points each state's framework examines.
Points that are easy to confuse
Florida practitioners use the word presumption. A New York decision uses the phrase prima facie case, and a Wisconsin decision uses a two-prong test. Each label belongs to its own state and its own source.
A confidential relationship appears in both the Florida elements and the Wisconsin test. The New York elements instead name opportunity, motive and actual exercise of undue influence.
Common questions
Is undue influence usually proved directly?
New York practitioners describe undue influence in New York claims as rarely proved by direct evidence and usually established through substantial circumstantial evidence. A New York court decision likewise says a prima facie case may be proven by substantial circumstantial evidence.
What does the Wisconsin test involve?
A Wisconsin Supreme Court decision allows undue influence to be proven in two prongs. The first prong is a confidential relationship between the testator and the favored beneficiary. The second prong is suspicious circumstances surrounding the will's making.