Contesting an Inheritance in Miami

"Contesting an inheritance" is not a single legal claim — it is an umbrella term that covers several very different proceedings under Florida law. If you suspect that a will, a trust, or the conduct of someone handling an estate has cheated you out of what you should receive, the first and most important step is identifying which claim actually fits your situation. The deadlines, the court, the burden of proof, and the strategy all change depending on whether you are challenging a will, attacking a trust, asserting a surviving spouse's elective share, or pursuing someone who diverted assets.

This page is the hub for inheritance disputes handled by our Coral Gables office. Below we explain the different paths a beneficiary or heir can take, how these matters actually proceed through the Probate Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade County, and where to go for in-depth guidance on each specific claim.

Reviewed by Albert Goodwin, Esq., attorney admitted to The Florida Bar and the New York State Bar, whose practice concentrates on probate, trust, and estate litigation in Miami-Dade and surrounding counties. Last reviewed for accuracy on the date of publication. This article is general information, not legal advice for your specific matter.

Which Kind of Inheritance Dispute Do You Actually Have?

Use this framework to figure out where your situation fits. Each route has its own dedicated guide on this site so you can go deeper after you identify the right path.

The document itself is invalid — a will. If the problem is the last will (a suspicious last-minute change, an incapacitated signer, a manipulated parent), you are pursuing a will contest. See also our step-by-step guide on how to contest a will in Florida.
The document itself is invalid — a trust. If the estate plan runs through a revocable living trust rather than a will, the challenge is a trust contest. Start with whether a trust can be contested and how to contest a trust.
The signer was not of sound mind. Capacity-based challenges have their own proof requirements — see lack of testamentary capacity and the specific scenario of a dementia will contest.
Someone pressured or manipulated the decedent. This is the classic undue influence claim, often combined with elder exploitation.
The signature or document is fake. See forged will and estate fraud.
You are a surviving spouse left with too little. Florida gives a surviving spouse a statutory minimum — the elective share — that does not require proving the will is invalid at all.
Assets were stolen, hidden, or diverted before or after death. That is inheritance theft, which may be paired with breach of fiduciary duty or an executor stealing.
You are on the other side and need to protect the estate plan. See defending a contested will and defending trust contests.

The remainder of this guide explains the cross-cutting rules — standing, deadlines, burden-shifting, fee exposure, and Miami-Dade procedure — that apply across all of these claims.

Will Contest vs. Trust Contest vs. Elective Share vs. Inheritance Theft

These four routes are frequently confused, but they are governed by different statutes and resolved in different ways:

Will contest. Filed inside the open probate case under the Florida Probate Code (Chapters 731–735) and the Florida Probate Rules. You are arguing the will is wholly or partly invalid (capacity, undue influence, fraud, improper execution, or revocation).
Trust contest. Governed by the Florida Trust Code (Chapter 736). Because a trust usually avoids probate, the challenge is brought as a separate civil action, and the deadline under F.S. § 736.0604 can be as short as six months from receiving statutory notice.
Elective share. Under F.S. § 732.201 et seq., a surviving spouse may elect to take 30% of the elective estate regardless of what the will or trust says. This is not a "contest" — you are not claiming the documents are invalid; you are exercising a statutory entitlement. The election must generally be filed within the earlier of six months after service of the notice of administration or two years after the decedent's death.
Inheritance theft / fiduciary claims. Here the documents may be perfectly valid, but a person diverted property — through forged beneficiary changes, misused power of attorney, or self-dealing as executor or trustee. The remedy may be a constructive trust, surcharge, or removal rather than invalidating an estate plan.

Many real Miami cases involve more than one of these at once — for example, a revocable trust executed during early dementia, paired with a power-of-attorney holder who moved bank accounts. Sorting out which claims to bring, and in which court, is the heart of the strategy.

Who Has Standing to Contest in Florida?

Standing is limited to an interested person as defined by F.S. § 731.201(23) — someone whose financial interest in the estate or trust may be reasonably affected by the outcome. In practice this includes:

Beneficiaries named in the current will or trust;
Beneficiaries named in a prior version who were reduced or cut out by the challenged document;
Heirs at law who would inherit under Florida's intestacy statutes if the document were set aside;
A surviving spouse asserting elective share or homestead rights; and
Creditors with a financial stake in administration.

A person who would receive nothing whether or not the document is invalidated generally lacks standing. If your prior-document share would not improve under intestacy, that gap matters and should be evaluated early.

Burden-Shifting Mechanics Under F.S. § 733.107

One of the most important — and least understood — rules in Florida inheritance litigation is the burden shift for undue influence. Normally, the party challenging a will or trust carries the burden of proof. But F.S. § 733.107(2) changes that. When the contestant establishes that a person who is (1) a substantial beneficiary under the instrument and (2) occupied a confidential or fiduciary relationship with the decedent (3) was active in procuring the instrument, a presumption of undue influence arises and the burden of proof shifts to the proponent to prove the absence of undue influence.

Florida courts look at the Carpenter factors to assess "active procurement" — including presence at execution, recommending the attorney, knowing the contents beforehand, giving instructions to the drafter, securing witnesses, and keeping the document afterward. No single factor is dispositive. Because this presumption can be the difference between winning and losing, capacity- and influence-based cases are built around developing these facts through medical records, drafting-attorney files, and bank records during discovery.

No-Contest (In Terrorem) Clauses Are Unenforceable in Florida

Many beneficiaries hesitate to challenge a document because it contains a clause stating they forfeit their inheritance if they contest. In Florida, you can generally set that fear aside. F.S. § 732.517 makes a no-contest provision in a will unenforceable, and F.S. § 736.1108 makes a penalty clause in a trust unenforceable as well. Florida treats these in terrorem clauses as void against public policy. This is a major difference from states that enforce them, and it means a Florida beneficiary can pursue a legitimate challenge without automatically risking the gift they already have.

Deadlines: Short and Strictly Enforced

Will objections. Once a will is admitted and the notice of administration is served, an interested person generally must file an objection within 3 months of service of the notice of administration; objections to the validity of the will, the qualification of the personal representative, venue, or jurisdiction are barred if not timely filed (F.S. § 733.212).
Trust contests. Six months from receipt of the trustee's notice and a copy of the trust (F.S. § 736.0604).
Elective share. The earlier of six months after service of the notice of administration or two years after death (F.S. § 732.2135).
Fraud-based civil claims. Generally a four-year limitations period under F.S. § 95.11, but probate-specific bars can cut this short.

Because these windows are short and unforgiving, the single biggest mistake we see is waiting. Preserve evidence and consult counsel as soon as you suspect a problem.

How Contested Matters Actually Proceed in Miami-Dade

Probate and trust litigation in Miami-Dade County is handled by the Probate Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, with hearings primarily at the Lawson E. Thomas Courthouse Center in downtown Miami. A few practical realities distinguish litigating here:

E-filing through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal. Pleadings are filed electronically and routed to the assigned probate division. Adversary matters within a probate case are treated as adversary proceedings under the Florida Probate Rules, which pulls in the broader civil discovery rules.
Mandatory and frequent mediation. Miami-Dade probate judges routinely order contested estate and trust matters to mediation before setting trial. A large share of inheritance disputes resolve at or shortly after mediation, which is often more cost-effective than a full trial.
Bench trials, not jury trials. Will and trust validity issues are tried to the probate judge. The discretion of the assigned division and its standing procedures (hearing scheduling, expert deadlines, pretrial requirements) shape the timeline considerably.
Typical duration. A contested matter in Miami-Dade frequently runs 12 to 24 months from filing to resolution, longer when capacity experts, forensic accountants, and out-of-state witnesses are involved.
Appeals. Final orders from the probate division are appealed to the Third District Court of Appeal, which sits in Miami and reviews Miami-Dade and Monroe County cases.

What Happens to Distributions During a Contest?

A pending contest does not automatically freeze the estate, but it changes how a prudent fiduciary acts. A personal representative or trustee who distributes assets while a validity challenge is pending may face personal exposure if the document is later set aside. Interested persons can seek to restrain distributions, and courts can require accountings, post bonds, or hold disputed assets in reserve. Homestead and exempt property, family allowance under F.S. § 732.403, and elective-share assets are handled under separate rules even while a contest proceeds. If you are worried assets are being moved before your claim is heard, that concern should be raised with the court promptly.

Who Pays the Attorney's Fees?

Fee exposure is a central strategic question. Costs in an inheritance contest can include attorney's fees (hourly, staged flat fees, or in some matters a contingency arrangement), expert witnesses (geriatric physicians, forensic accountants, handwriting examiners), court and deposition costs, and shared mediation fees.

Florida's fee rules cut both ways. Under F.S. § 733.106, a person who has rendered services to an estate may recover reasonable fees, and a court may direct from which part of the estate or against whom fees are paid — including, in some circumstances, against a party whose conduct caused the litigation. A successful litigant who benefits the estate may obtain fees from estate assets, but recovery is fact-dependent and never guaranteed. We assess realistic fee exposure on both sides before recommending whether to litigate or negotiate.

How Our Miami Office Approaches Inheritance Disputes

The Law Offices of Albert Goodwin, PA handles probate, trust, and estate disputes for beneficiaries, heirs, and fiduciaries in Miami-Dade and the surrounding South Florida counties. Our work spans the full range of matters described above — capacity and undue-influence will contests, trust validity challenges, elective-share claims, fiduciary surcharge and removal actions, and the defense of estate plans against challenges.

In the kinds of matters we handle — for example, a late-in-life beneficiary-designation change by a caretaker, or a revocable trust amendment signed while a parent was in cognitive decline — the outcome usually turns on early evidence preservation: medical and pharmacy records, the drafting attorney's file, and bank and brokerage statements. We evaluate standing, deadlines, and the F.S. § 733.107 burden shift at the outset so you know where you stand before incurring litigation costs. (We describe these as illustrative scenarios; every case turns on its own facts, and past matters do not predict any particular result.)

Frequently Asked Questions

Is contesting an inheritance the same as contesting a will?

No. Contesting a will is one type of inheritance dispute. "Contesting an inheritance" also covers trust contests, elective-share claims, and inheritance-theft and fiduciary actions, each with different statutes, deadlines, and procedures.

Will I lose my inheritance just for challenging the will or trust?

Generally no. Florida does not enforce no-contest clauses in wills (F.S. § 732.517) or trusts (F.S. § 736.1108), so a good-faith challenge does not forfeit a gift you already have.

How long do I have to contest in Miami-Dade?

It depends on the claim — commonly 3 months after the notice of administration for will objections, 6 months after notice for trust contests, and the earlier of 6 months after notice or 2 years after death for the elective share. Missing these deadlines usually bars the claim entirely.

Where are these cases heard?

In the Probate Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade, with appeals to the Third District Court of Appeal in Miami. Most contested matters are sent to mediation before trial.

Can I recover my legal fees if I win?

Sometimes. Under F.S. § 733.106 a court has discretion to award fees from the estate or against a party in certain circumstances, but recovery depends on the facts and is not guaranteed.

Speak With a Miami Inheritance Dispute Attorney

If you believe a will or trust was the product of undue influence, incapacity, or fraud, if you are a surviving spouse exploring the elective share, if you suspect inheritance theft, or if you need to defend an estate plan against a challenge, prompt action matters because the deadlines are short.

Call the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin, PA at 786-522-1411 or email [email protected] to schedule a consultation. Our office is located at 121 Alhambra Plaza #1000, Coral Gables, FL 33134, serving Miami-Dade County and South Florida.