Fraud and forgery

In the same way that undue influence can render a Will void, fraudulent claims can also be deemed to have occurred when a beneficiary of a Will intentionally and purposefully misleads the testator about the character, among other things, of a potential beneficiary to cause the testator to exclude or reduce that beneficiary’s entitlement under the Will, thereby benefiting themselves.

The individual delivering the remarks must be careless in determining whether or not they are authentic or aware that they are false.

Fraudulent claims concern the poisoning of the testator’s mind against a party who would otherwise be a natural beneficiary of the testator’s estate through casting dishonest aspersions on his character.

The significant difference between fraudulent claims and undue influence is that undue influence requires the testator to be forcibly coerced by another into changing their Will by their free Will being overborne. In contrast, fraudulent claims are a more subtle form of influence. Ultimately, the testator will have changed their Will by their own free choice but due to a change of perception of a potential beneficiary due to the untrue comments about them.