The $300 million estate of a woman whose father helped build Las
Vegas is proceeding to a trial in New York. The Court will be
asked whether either of the last two Wills signed by Huguette Clark
is valid.
According to a recent article, Ms. Clark's
"distant relatives" were the primary beneficiaries under
her next-to-last Will. However, they were excluded in the
last Will, made some six weeks later. The Court must consider
whether Ms. Clark had the necessary capacity to sign the Wills
(i.e. whether she has "testamentary capacity") and
whether she was unduly influenced in the gifts and changes that she
made.
The main question for the Court to determine is whether the last
Will accurately reflects the true wishes of the deceased, formed at
a time when she was mentally capable of deciding who would
benefit from her estate. In British Columbia, a case
such as this would include evidence from the people who knew the
deceased, the lawyer who prepared the Will, and
