When your parents’ will was read, you expected to get similar assets as your siblings. However, you were shocked to find out that you’d been left much less money. In fact, your parents had only left you a single dollar.
You were perplexed. Why would they do something like this? What is the point of giving you a single dollar, and why wouldn’t they just leave you out of the will entirely?
They’re likely trying to prevent a will contest
The odds are that your parent is simply trying to prevent a will contest on the grounds that you were accidentally forgotten. If they wanted to disinherit you and they just didn’t put your name in the will, you might be able to claim that they didn’t mean to leave you out and that the whole thing was a misunderstanding. This has been the basis for will contests in the past.
If your parent leaves you a single dollar, they may believe that that is enough to stop a will contest because it proves that they didn’t forget about you. They may also choose to add a disinheritance clause to the will, stating that you’re being disinherited without leaving you anything.
Do you still have any options?
You may have options if you still want to start a contest. For instance, maybe you believe that your parents didn’t leave you a single dollar but that one of your siblings altered the will to essentially cut you out by reducing what you got. If you think anything like this has occurred, it can be very complicated, and you need to know all of the legal steps you should take moving forward.
