Capacity, Undue Influence, and Will Contests

What this guide covers

• Capacity standards differ by document; a client may have capacity to sign a will and not an irrevocable trust or a deed executed the same day.
• Undue influence turns on susceptibility, opportunity, disposition, and an unnatural result, with isolation and beneficiary procurement the most probative facts.
• Whether a confidential relationship plus active procurement shifts the burden of persuasion or only of production is a state-law question that frequently decides the case.
• The defense is built during drafting: meet the client alone, take instructions verbatim, screen capacity actively, document reasons, and choose witnesses for credibility years later.
• A no-contest clause deters only a beneficiary with something to lose, is unenforceable for probable cause in many states, and must appear in every instrument in the plan.
• Model Rules 1.14, 1.7, and 1.8(c) govern diminished capacity, family conflicts, and gifts to the drafter; document the client identification in writing.

The full guide includes the detailed analysis, worked examples, statutory citations, and related resources below.