Can a Trust Be Contested in Florida?

The short answer: yes, but only on specific grounds and within set deadlines

Can a trust be contested in Florida? Yes. A challenge must rest on a recognized legal ground and be filed within the time the statute allows.

Many people first ask this question after a parent dies, when a trust they never saw turns out to leave them less than they expected. The answer depends on the document and the dates.

A trust contest asks a court to decide whether the trust document is valid. It is not simply a complaint that a distribution feels unfair. The core question is whether the document was made properly, by someone able to make it, and free of pressure or deception.

Florida law says a trust, or the part of it, created, amended, or restated through fraud, duress, mistake, or undue influence is void, and so is a revocation of a trust or part of it procured by those means. Fla. Stat. § 736.0406 says the rest of the trust stays valid if it is not invalid for other reasons. This page covers Florida trusts only. Will contests follow different statutes.

Who can bring a trust contest

Whether a particular person may challenge a trust depends on the facts of each case. Florida’s trust code defines a beneficiary as someone with a present or future beneficial interest in a trust, vested or contingent, or who holds a power of appointment over trust property in a capacity other than that of trustee. An interest as a permissible appointee of a power of appointment, held by a person in a capacity other than that of trustee, is not a beneficial interest for that purpose. The definitions section of the Florida Trust Code, Fla. Stat. § 736.0103, defines terms such as “beneficiary” and “settlor.”

Interest is different from curiosity. A contest is a court case, and the person bringing it carries the burden. Fla. Stat. § 736.0207 places that burden on the contestant to establish the grounds for invalidity.

Our trust litigation practice covers the wider topic in more detail at the Florida trust litigation overview.

Recognized grounds for challenging a trust

The main grounds are lack of capacity, undue influence, fraud, duress, and mistake. Each one goes to how the trust was made or changed.

Capacity is the mental ability to create, amend or revoke a trust. For a revocable trust, Florida uses the same capacity standard that applies to a will. Under Fla. Stat. § 736.0601, the capacity required to create, amend, revoke, or add property to a revocable trust, or to direct the actions of its trustee, is the same as that required to make a will.

Fraud, duress, and mistake are covered by the same validity rule in § 736.0406. The trust also must meet basic creation rules, including the settlor’s intent to create it. Fla. Stat. § 736.0402 sets those rules out.

The facts decide each ground. Courts look at the document, the timing of any change, and who was involved.

Deadlines: how soon a trust contest must be filed

A contest of a trust that was revocable at the settlor’s death is barred if it is not started on time. Fla. Stat. § 736.0604 sets out both triggers.

The first is the time allowed under chapter 95 of the Florida Statutes. That notice must state the trust’s existence, the trustee’s name and address, and the time allowed to file.

If you received such a notice, check its date right away. Waiting for a dispute to grow can cost you the claim.

Timing can depend on the specific dates and facts of each matter. A contest of a trust that was revocable at the settlor’s death is barred, if not commenced within the earlier of the chapter 95 period or six months after the trustee sent the person a copy of the trust instrument and a notice informing the person of the trust’s existence, of the trustee’s name and address, and of the time allowed for commencing a proceeding. Fla. Stat. § 736.0604 sets that limit. Many readers mix these two rules up. If the trust is irrevocable, its options differ, and the irrevocable trust dissolution guide explains them.

No-contest clauses and what happens while a contest is pending

A provision in a trust instrument that penalizes an interested person for contesting the trust instrument or instituting other proceedings relating to a trust estate or trust assets is unenforceable, and this rule applies to trusts created on or after October 1, 1993; for a revocable trust, it is treated as created when the right of revocation terminates (Fla. Stat. § 736.1108). A penalty clause punishes an interested person who challenges the trust, such as by cutting off a gift. Fla. Stat. § 736.1108 states that rule. Read the trust’s exact wording and its creation date before you act.

While a contest is pending, the trustee keeps administering the trust. Fla. Stat. § 736.08165 bars any action or distribution that conflicts with the rights of people the outcome could affect. On a party’s motion and after notice to interested persons, a court may grant an exception for good cause, and it may require a bond.

Some trust disputes go to mediation. The American Arbitration Association describes mediation as a process that may offer faster resolution than litigation. The Florida courts’ ADR handbook describes court alternative dispute resolution rules.

Frequently asked questions

Talk with the Coral Gables team about your trust

You may be reading a trust you did not write, after a death or a change in the family. You may be asking whether any challenge is possible at all. That question turns on the grounds, the deadline, and when the trust became irrevocable.

Leslie V. Marenco is the lawyer responsible for this page. Our office is in Coral Gables. Call (305) 707-7126 or schedule online to talk through the trust document and its dates with Trust Counsel, PL. The first consultation is free, confidential, and comes with no obligation to continue.