Many seniors prefer to stay in their own homes as they get older. As a result, they often need to hire professional caregivers to assist them if they have difficulties caring for themselves. That’s especially true if they don’t have family nearby with the time and skills needed to help them.
These caregivers come to their homes and help with everything from daily personal care to running errands and going to medical appointments. They can also be a great source of companionship and conversation. It’s not unusual for people to grow close to a caregiver – particularly if they see them nearly daily. However, sometimes some caregivers may take advantage of that closeness. They convince the person under their care to make changes to an estate plan, which the family does not discover until it is too late.
If this is the situation you find yourself in, how do you know that they legitimately made this bequest? If you didn’t know the caregiver well, how do you know they didn’t pressure or even trick or threaten your loved one into leaving them something?
California law and “rebuttable presumption”
While most professional caregivers are honest people, unfortunately, some do take advantage of an older person’s cognitive decline, dependence and trusting nature to get an inheritance that person didn’t intend for them to have. Fortunately, California law helps families challenge a caregiver inheritance they find suspect.
Under California law, a “donative transfer…is presumed to be the product of fraud or undue influence” if “the instrument was executed during the period in which the care custodian provided services to the transferor, or within 90 days before or after that period.”
That’s known as a “rebuttable presumption,” which means that the caregiver has the burden of proof – not those questioning the legitimacy of their inheritance. Note that this rebuttable presumption also applies to others who may have been in the deceased’s life around the time they passed away – for example, a new roommate, partner or spouse. This law is intended to protect dependent people from being defrauded by those upon whom they rely.
If the caregiver cannot provide you with convincing evidence that your loved one intended for them to have the inheritance, then the best course of action is to rely on the probate court to decide the matter. It’s wise, however, to get sound legal guidance before determining how best to handle the matter so that your loved one’s wishes are honored.