A Guide To Contesting A Will

Key Points

A letter or a conversation after a funeral is often the first sign that something is wrong: the Will names someone unexpected, cuts out a child who was always promised a share, or reads nothing like the person who supposedly wrote it. Family members are usually still grieving when they have to decide, in a matter of weeks, whether to do anything about it at all. Not every unfair Will is a legally challengeable one, and the four grounds the law actually recognises are narrower than most people expect. Where you do have a genuine ground, the clock is already running, often from the date probate is granted rather than the date you found out. Here we set out the grounds you can rely on, how long you have, and what happens if you act, or do not.

What counts as a valid reason to contest a will?

A Will that simply seems unfair, or that surprises the family, is not on its own a legal ground for a challenge. You can only contest a Will on one of four grounds:

1) It was not signed and witnessed correctly

Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 sets out how a Will must be signed. It must be in writing and signed by the person making it in front of two witnesses, who must then sign it in that person’s presence.

2) The person lacked mental capacity

The case of Banks v Goodfellow in 1870 established the legal test for mental capacity to make a Will. Mr Banks had mental health problems and experienced delusions, but the court found that these did not affect his decision to leave his estate to his niece. His Will was therefore valid. The case showed that having a mental illness does not automatically prevent someone from making a valid Will. The question is whether they understood what they were doing and whether any illness or delusion affected the decisions made in the Will.

3) Someone exerted undue influence over them

Undue influence means that someone was forced or pressured into making a Will that did not reflect their own wishes. Persuasion alone is not enough. Fraud includes forging a Will or deliberately misleading someone about what they are signing. A Will may also be challenged if the person did not know and approve its contents.

4) The Will was forged or obtained by fraud

A Will can be challenged if it is not genuine or was obtained through deliberate deception.

Forgery may include:

Note: A separate issue arises when a Will contains a clerical or drafting error and does not reflect the person’s instructions. The court may be able to correct the mistake through a process called rectification. This is not the same as declaring the Will invalid.

Who can contest a will?

You can contest a Will only if you have standing, meaning you are a spouse, civil partner, child, someone named in this Will or an earlier one, or someone who would inherit under the intestacy rules if the will failed. Being disappointed by the outcome does not, by itself, give you standing.

Grandchildren, siblings, and close friends who were not previously named anywhere and who were not financially dependent on the deceased generally have no standing to bring a validity challenge, however strongly they feel the Will is wrong. Where you are unsure whether you fall into an eligible category, answering that question first decides whether the rest of this guide applies to your position at all.

What is testamentary capacity and how is it proved?

Testamentary capacity means the person understood they were making a Will, understood roughly what they owned, understood who would normally expect to benefit, and was not affected by any delusion distorting their decisions. Failing any one of these four elements is enough to defeat capacity.

Medical evidence of a diagnosis such as dementia is not automatically decisive; the court asks whether this specific person understood these specific things when they signed this specific Will. Solicitors' notes from the time the Will was drafted, GP and hospital records, and statements from people who saw the testator regularly are the evidence that usually decides these cases.

A diagnosis that was documented months or years before the Will was signed does not settle the question either way, since capacity can fluctuate and a person can retain capacity for a Will even with an established diagnosis affecting other decisions. Contemporaneous evidence is key – for example, evidence that the solicitor asked the doctor to confirm capacity at the time of signing.

How does undue influence differ from fraud?

Undue influence means someone's free will was actually overpowered so the Will reflects the influencer's wishes rather than the testator's own, while fraud means the Will was forged or the testator was deliberately deceived into signing it. Both are difficult to prove because the person who could describe what happened has died.

Persuasion, pressure, and even a strong personality living in the same house are not, without more, undue influence. Courts look for evidence that the testator's own judgement was displaced, which usually comes from witnesses who saw the relationship, correspondence, or a marked and unexplained change from a previous Will. Fraud claims tend to rest on handwriting analysis, evidence about who had access to the document, and inconsistencies between the signing account given by the executor and other records.

The burden of proof in an undue influence claim is on the person alleging it, and courts are cautious about inferring coercion from suspicion alone, so these claims succeed less often than families expect. A sudden and dramatic change in favour of a new partner, carer, or recently introduced acquaintance, made shortly before death and without independent legal advice, is the pattern that most often supports a successful claim.

What if the will is valid but leaves me nothing?

If the Will itself is valid but does not provide for you, you may be able to claim reasonable financial provision under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, provided you fall within a defined category of eligible claimant.

This route does not challenge the Will's validity; it asks the court to adjust the outcome.

Eligible claimants include spouses, civil partners, former spouses who have not remarried, children of the deceased, and anyone treated as a child of the family or who was financially maintained by the deceased before death. The court considers your financial needs, the size of the estate, and competing claims from other beneficiaries before deciding whether to redirect part of the estate to you. This is different from a validity challenge, and the two are sometimes run together where a family disputes both the Will's validity and its fairness.

Adult children face a higher hurdle than a spouse or a minor child, because the court asks whether they needed maintenance, not simply whether an equal division would have felt fairer. Financial need, health, earning capacity, and the length and nature of any dependency on the deceased are all taken into consideration, and a well-off adult child with no dependency is far less likely to succeed than one who was still being supported at the date of death.

What are my options once I suspect a problem?

Once you suspect a Will is wrong, your main options are to:

Which is right for you depends on timing, evidence, and how the other side responds. A caveat buys time without committing you to litigation. Direct negotiation, often through solicitors on both sides, resolves a large proportion of contested probate disputes without a hearing, since litigation is expensive and uncertain for everyone involved. If negotiation fails or the estate is at risk of being distributed, a claim in the High Court, Chancery Division, becomes the remaining route, and mediation is frequently attempted before or during proceedings because the courts actively encourage it.

How long do I have to bring a claim?

You generally have six months from the date the grant of probate or letters of administration is first taken out to bring a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, and the same six-month period applies to a claim for rectification of a clerical error. Missing this window does not automatically end your claim, but you still need the court's permission to proceed.

If you do not know the exact date probate was granted, you can apply to the Probate Registry for a standing search, which notifies you as soon as a grant is issued, giving you a fixed point from which to count the six months. Issuing a claim before you have gathered every piece of evidence protects the deadline, since the claim can be refined afterwards while a missed deadline usually cannot be recovered.

What happens if I do nothing?

If you take no action, the executor is free to distribute the estate once any waiting period has passed. Once assets have moved into a beneficiary's own bank account, paid off their mortgage, or been spent, you are pursuing that individual directly rather than an estate still held by the executor, which is a slower and more expensive route to the same money. Section 20 of the Administration of Justice Act 1982 also protects an executor who has distributed the estate more than six months after the grant from personal liability for having done so.

What can I do to stop the estate being distributed?

You can lodge a caveat at the Probate Registry, which prevents a grant of probate being issued while your concerns about the Will are resolved, and it lasts for six months, renewable if the dispute is still live. A caveat is a holding measure, not a decision on the merits, and it buys time to investigate and gather evidence.

A caveat is entered before probate is granted, so it is only available if you act early, ideally as soon as you learn of a Will you intend to challenge. It stops the registry issuing a grant to anyone, which in turn stops the executor from collecting in and distributing assets. Where probate has already been granted, a caveat is no longer available, and you instead need to move quickly under whichever claim actually fits your circumstances.

An executor who disputes the caveat can apply to have it removed by issuing what is known as a warning, which forces you to either enter an appearance confirming you intend to pursue the dispute or let the caveat lapse. This exchange usually happens within weeks of the caveat being lodged, so gathering your grounds and evidence early avoids losing the caveat by default when the warning arrives.

Final words

A Will cannot be challenged simply because it seems unfair. You must have a recognised legal ground and evidence to support it. If the Will is valid but fails to make reasonable financial provision for you, a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 may be available instead.

Act quickly if you have concerns. Claims under the 1975 Act and applications to rectify a Will normally have a six-month time limit from the grant of representation, although the court may permit a late application. If probate has not yet been granted, a caveat can temporarily stop the grant while the Will is investigated. Taking legal advice early can help you identify the correct claim, protect any deadline and prevent the estate from being distributed.

Last reviewed: September 2026

Talk to Pearcelegal

If you suspect a Will does not reflect what your family member actually intended, or you have been left without provision you believe you should have received, we can look at your situation and tell you plainly whether a claim is likely to succeed. Contact our contesting a Will team to arrange a free consultation, or read about how we handle probate and estate administration if the estate itself also needs managing. Where the dispute has become adversarial, our wider dispute resolution team can also advise on negotiation and, if needed, proceedings. Call us on 0121 270 2700.

Frequently asked questions

Can I contest a will after probate has been granted?

Yes, it is still possible to contest a Will after probate has been granted, but acting before the grant is issued gives you far more options, and strict time limits apply to some claims, so you should get advice as soon as you suspect a problem.

Can I contest a will if I was left out of it entirely?

You can only contest a Will if you have a recognised legal ground, such as lack of capacity or undue influence, or if you were financially dependent on the deceased and the Will fails to make reasonable provision for you under separate legislation.

Who is allowed to contest a will?

A Will can generally be contested by a spouse, civil partner, or child of the deceased, by anyone named as a beneficiary in this Will or an earlier one, or by anyone who was financially maintained by the deceased before their death.

Does contesting a will stop the estate being distributed?

Lodging a caveat at the Probate Registry stops a grant of probate being issued while your challenge is resolved, but this only works before probate is granted; once assets have been distributed, recovering them is considerably harder.

How much does it cost to contest a will?

Costs vary widely depending on how far the dispute progresses, since early negotiation is far cheaper than court proceedings, and we can give you a realistic estimate once we understand the specific ground and evidence involved in your case.

Further Reading:

Read our detailed guide to the evidence needed to contest a will and how different types of evidence may support a claim.

Find out more about the costs of contesting a will, including the factors that can affect legal fees.

You can also explore the recognised grounds for contesting a will and when each ground may apply.

About the Author

Stephanie Howard (SRA number 432274) is a Director of Pearcelegal and Head of the firm's Family and Litigation department. Admitted as a solicitor in 2015, she advises on the full range of family work, including divorce, financial remedy proceedings, child arrangements, civil partnerships and cohabitation disputes, alongside general civil litigation and contentious probate. Stephanie joined Pearcelegal in 2014, was promoted to Associate in 2021, took over the Family and Litigation team in 2023 and was appointed a Director in April 2026. She is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA ID 432274). Pearcelegal itself is authorised and regulated under SRA firm number 423097.