When drafting an estate plan, you do not necessarily have to split up all of your assets equally. Many people do, but do not assume that there is a legal obligation to leave all beneficiaries an equal portion. You do have the option to use unequal bequests, such as leaving the bulk of your inheritance to just one or two people.
If you choose to do so, however, it can create some problems after your passing. Many family disputes and conflicts start with unequal bequests. In some cases, this could even lead to an estate challenge.
Why would someone challenge the estate plan?
It is natural that a beneficiary may feel frustrated if they thought they would receive an equal portion and instead received far less than other beneficiaries. But that alone is not enough to challenge an estate plan. Once again, there is no legal obligation to make things equal, so it does not provide grounds for a will challenge.
However, beneficiaries may claim that there are other issues with the estate plan that do warrant such a challenge. Maybe they think that your declining mental state as you grew older contributed to the discrepancy and that you actually wanted to divide things equally. Your testamentary capacity could be called into question.
Or perhaps the beneficiary who received the majority of the assets is accused of manipulation, fraud or undue influence. This could also lead to an estate challenge if there is evidence that they may have altered the will or taken other steps to ensure that they got most of the assets.
Even if this does not overturn the estate plan, it can still lead to serious conflicts. It is important to keep this in mind while exploring your legal options.