Will not probated for more than 6 years. Can others raise rights?

my brothers show a will after 6 years of my father expired. saying father has written a will and all properties favour only to 4 brothers. it was shocking news and go through the will copy sent by them now it shows that one of the property was acquired by my father through familay arrangement and another property through gift from aunt. so father said in the document saying he has all rights to write the will as per his wish due to his own property.
i live in aunt's house, it was given a gift to my father, my sons are payng rent to my brothers they also live in the same house i live.
it was not paid as rent, my father asked me when he was alive for his expenses , he reqeusted me to help him, so i was paying him later my sons started paying to my brothers on a continual basis till date.
i never knew there was a will written by my father.
now they have shown the will and asked me to sign the document to their favour. i refused , so they gone to court for probate.
i approached lawyer to take advise, he suggested me to counter because they should have probate the document within 3 years from my father's death, i will have equal rights. so i counterd and said i have suspicion on the will,
now, another lawyer says when the witness alive and they say the will is true then it will be valid and probate can be allowed by the judge.
will is also not registred and probated till date. father expired 6 years back and will says it was prepared 6 months before he died
pl suggest, whether the the document will be allowed to probate, should i spend time and money with lawyers to continue the case .
they also approached me for very megare amount few thousands for many crores properties for amicable settlement.
i am not sure what to do
pl advise
ram

Asked 9 years ago in Property Law

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5 Answers

1) you should oppose grant of probate . file your affidavit opposing grant of probate . the fact that will was not disclosed for period of 6 years after your father demise is a suspicious circumstances surrounding the will .

2) you have been wrongly advised by first lawyer that probate should be applied within 3 years only . if there was no dispute between legal heirs it is not necessary that probate should be applied within 3 years only

4) however your brothers would have to explain why they delayed disclosing that will was made by your father for period of 6 years

5) are the witnesses alive ? was your father of sound mind at time of execution of will ?

6)registration of will is optional and not mandatory requirement

6)contact a local lawyer and contest the will if you believe that your father signature was forged or that your father was not of sound mind at time of execution of will or that will was made under undue influence or coercion

Ajay Sethi

Advocate, Mumbai

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1. The aow of imitation does not apply as far 3 years limit is concerned.

2. The property is considered to be the self acquired property of the father and in that context he can bequeath the same to anyone he chooses.

3 However in the Probate case the Will can be challenged by the dissenting parties on the ground that it was not a product of self-will or a product of force and coercion exercised by the beneficiary of the Will.

Devajyoti Barman

Advocate, Kolkata

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1. It is not correct that the limit for applying for probate is 3 years,

2. It is also a fact that it is highly suspicious as to why they took 6 years to apply for probate,

3. Challenge the application for probate on grounds like coercion etc.,

4. Enquire from the witnesses about the signature of your father, if they are alive.

Krishna Kishore Ganguly

Advocate, Kolkata

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1. 3 years is not the time limit to seek probate of a will. There is no time limit to apply for probate.

2. When your brothers apply for probate you should oppose the grant of probate on the ground that probate has been sought after elapse of 6 years from the demise of your father. The fact that it took 6 years for them to seek probate clouds the entire will in suspicion.

3. If probate is refused you will get an equal share in all the properties of your father.

4. A will is not required to be mandatorily registered. An unregistered will is as good as a registered will.

5. The witnesses who signed the will can throw a lot of light on the circumstances in which the will was made.

Ashish Davessar

Advocate, Jaipur

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Hi,

1. There is no 3 year limit to probate a WILL time elapsed is not an technical issue of limitation when it comes to WILL probate, however your brothers have not disclosed it for long 6 years, this leaves a doubt..

2. However you can use it to your defense of questioning your brother's intentions.Moreover it is for your interest to challenge it , and seek a partition for your shares.

3. In Tamil Nadu The registration of WILL is not mandatory, but there many elements make a WIll genuine, so you should dispute it and challenge the probate. There many things make the WILL genuine , a badly made WILL can be challenged and it can be in your favour .

4. bank on the defense, of-signature of your father not genuine

- witnesses

- date and mode of preparation

- legal requirements of soundness of mind certificate if your father was above 60

- your father's physical condition, ailments

- undue influence, coercion

- the logical reason why you were left out,