Will is Contested Because Testator’s Hand Was Guided as He Executed It

Are you worth $1 billion, thinking of signing a will that drastically reduces the inheritance of your children in favor of their step-mother, and unable to sign your name on your own?  Perhaps you should consider the following:

• Melvin Simon left behind an estate worth $1 billion when he died. 
• Seven months prior to his death, he revoked a will that split his estate three ways between his second wife, his children from a prior marriage, and charity, and executed a new will that left about half of his estate to his wife, about half to charity, and leftovers for his children.
• Unable to sign his name on his own, a financial advisor helped him execute the will by guiding his hand. 
• Obviously, the children have contested the validity of the will, claiming duress and lack of capacity.
• Simon’s second wife claims that the will is valid and that the changes were necessary to take care of her.

See Kris Hudson & Rachel Emma Silverman, Mall Heirs Battle Over Will, WSJ, Feb. 10, 2010. 

Special thanks to Patrick S. Sylvester (Attorney & Counselor at Law, Sylvester Law Firm, PC) for bringing this article to my attention.