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My mom recently passed away, and before she died, she verbally promised me that I could have the family farm since I’ve been helping her run it for the past five years, even covering about $100,000 in farm-related expenses. There’s nothing in writing, and now my siblings, who haven’t been involved with the farm, say the agreement isn’t valid. I’m trying to figure out if a verbal agreement with a deceased person holds any legal weight. Has anyone been through something similar? Any advice would be appreciated.
In my experience, trying to prove a verbal agreement after someone dies is an uphill battle. My uncle claimed my grandpa verbally promised him some land, but since there was a written will that said otherwise, and verbal contracts aren’t generally accepted by the courts, especially with a clear written will in place, according to what I learned from a solicitor friend, the court sided with the will. He spent over $5,000 on legal fees and got nothing.
I actually know someone whose verbal agreement was upheld! My cousin cared for his mother for ten years, and she verbally promised him her house. Even though there was no written agreement, he presented clear and convincing evidence, like neighbor testimonies and records of the care he provided, and the court, similar to the Estate of Bohl case, allowed him to try and prove the contract existed based entirely on what people said. It went back to court, so it’s not a guarantee, but he had a chance.
As someone who was an executor for my aunt’s estate, I can tell you that verbal agreements create major headaches. We had at least three different family members come forward with stories of things my aunt supposedly promised them. Since there were no written records, and our lawyer advised us that verbal contracts are not legally binding in general, we had to follow the written will, which upset a lot of people.
From what I understand from a lawyer I consulted, real estate agreements usually have to be in writing due to something called the Statute of Frauds. My neighbor tried to claim his deceased father verbally promised him a piece of land, but the lawyer said without a written deed or contract, it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to enforce, even if three people heard the father say it.
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