Challenging a will: the grounds and how a dispute unfolds

The starting point: freedom to choose

A person in Singapore may leave their estate to whoever they like, including people outside the family, and may leave relatives out. The courts respect that choice. A challenge therefore has to show that the document is not a valid will, not simply that it is unexpected or seems unfair.

The recognised grounds

• Formal defects: the will was not in writing, not signed at the end, or not witnessed by two people present together who signed in the will-maker's presence.
• Lack of capacity: when signing, the will-maker did not understand what a will does, what they owned or who might have a claim on them.
• Lack of knowledge and approval: the will-maker did not know or accept what the document said, for instance because it was never explained to them or was in a language they could not read.
• Undue influence: someone coerced the will-maker so that the will reflects that person's wishes. Persuasion or pleading alone is not enough.
• Fraud or forgery: the will-maker was deceived about what they were signing, or the signature is not genuine.

The kind of evidence that matters

Medical records and a doctor's view of the will-maker's state of mind around the date of signing are central in capacity cases. The two witnesses, the lawyer's file notes, signs that a beneficiary isolated the will-maker or arranged the will, and a sharp departure from earlier wills can all be relevant. Disputed signatures may be examined by a handwriting expert.

How a dispute proceeds

A person with an interest in the estate, such as a beneficiary under an earlier will or someone who would inherit on an intestacy, can lodge a caveat with the Family Justice Courts. While it stands, no grant can be made without notice to them, which gives time to look into the grounds. The matter may then be settled by negotiation or mediation, or go to court.

If probate has already been granted, a caveat is no longer available. The challenger instead starts court proceedings asking for the grant to be revoked, and the case runs much like other civil litigation, through pleadings, evidence and trial.

If the will is set aside, the estate passes under the most recent earlier valid will or, failing that, under the Intestate Succession Act.

A different route: family provision

Some family members who do not dispute the will's validity can still ask the court, under the Inheritance (Family Provision) Act, for reasonable maintenance from the estate. The people covered are a spouse, a daughter who has not married or cannot support herself because of disability, a son under 21, and a son who cannot support himself because of disability. Time limits apply to this claim.

Weighing it up

Contested estates can take a long time and the legal costs can be high, sometimes more than the sum in dispute. Acting early, before assets are distributed, and getting an assessment of the evidence before committing are both important.