Common Acts of Fraud in California Trust, Estate, and Probate Litigation

by Michael Hackard

Publication Date September 14, 2026 in Inheritance Heists

Understanding Fraud in California Trust and Probate Cases

I’m Michael Hackard, founder of Hackard Law. Over five decades of practice, I have fought for heirs, beneficiaries, and elder abuse victims whose inheritances were stolen through deception, manipulation, and outright fraud. I have written four published books on inheritance protection and produced more than 1,000 educational videos that have reached over seven million viewers. Our firm handles substantial trust, estate, probate, and elder financial abuse litigation throughout California  –  serving clients in Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Los Angeles.

Fraud is one of the most damaging forces in estate litigation. It corrupts the final wishes of the deceased, diverts assets from the people who were meant to receive them, and leaves families fractured by betrayal. In this post, I want to walk through the most common forms of fraud Hackard Law encounters in California trust and probate disputes, and explain what the law offers families who have been harmed.

Hackard Law provides contingency fee representation  –  no upfront costs for qualified cases. If you believe fraud has affected your inheritance, call us at (916) 313-3030.

Quick Summary

California law recognizes multiple forms of fraud that can invalidate a will or trust, and strict filing deadlines apply to any challenge. Knowing the type of fraud involved  –  and acting quickly  –  can make the difference between recovering an inheritance and losing it entirely.

• Actual fraud requires intent to deceive; constructive fraud can occur even without fraudulent intent.
• Fraud in the inducement involves lies that cause a testator to change their estate plan.
• Fraud in the execution involves tricking a person into signing a document they did not understand.
• California statutes create presumptions of fraud or undue influence for transfers to certain categories of people.
• Will contests and trust contests each carry their own strict statutory deadlines.

Actual Fraud Versus Constructive Fraud

California law draws a clear line between actual fraud and constructive fraud. Actual fraud requires intent  –  someone deliberately deceives another person to gain an advantage. The California Civil Code identifies several forms: asserting something as true that the speaker knows is false, making a promise with no intention of keeping it, suppressing facts that the other party has a right to know, or any act designed to deceive.

Constructive fraud is different. It does not require a dishonest intent. It arises when a person in a position of trust or confidence  –  a fiduciary  –  gains an advantage by misleading another, even if they did not set out to deceive. In estate and trust disputes, fiduciary relationships are common: trustees, agents under a power of attorney, and caregivers all owe duties to the people they serve. When those duties are breached in a way that benefits the fiduciary at the expense of heirs or beneficiaries, California courts may find constructive fraud even without proof of a deliberate scheme.

Understanding this distinction matters because it shapes the legal theory behind a contest. You can learn more about how trust beneficiaries can respond when a trustee delays or withholds distributions  –  a situation where constructive fraud often surfaces.

Fraud in the Inducement and Fraud in the Execution

Two forms of fraud appear repeatedly in California estate litigation: fraud in the inducement and fraud in the execution.

Fraud in the inducement occurs when someone uses deception to cause a testator or trust maker to change their estate plan. The deceived person acts of their own free will  –  but they are acting on false information planted by someone with something to gain. The theory is that the grantor would have made different choices had the truth been known.

A common pattern: a family member tells an aging parent that a sibling has stopped calling, stopped visiting, and no longer cares about them. In reality, that sibling has been trying to maintain contact, but the lying family member has intercepted messages, blocked calls, and physically isolated the parent. Believing the lies, the parent revises their will or trust to cut out the absent sibling and leave more  –  sometimes everything  –  to the person running the scheme.

Case Pattern: Isolation and False Narrative

An adult child convinced a widowed parent that their out-of-state sibling had abandoned the family. The parent, relying on this false account, executed a new trust amendment leaving the entire estate to the manipulating child. After the parent died, the excluded sibling uncovered text messages and phone records showing a deliberate pattern of blocked contact. The case proceeded on a fraud in the inducement theory, with the documentary evidence forming the core of the challenge.

Fraud in the execution is a different animal. Here, the person signing the document does not even know what they are signing. A common example: someone presents a trust maker with papers described as a benefit application or a routine form, when the document is actually a will or trust amendment. The person signs, believing they are completing paperwork for one purpose, while the document accomplishes something entirely different. This is among the most disturbing forms of estate fraud  –  it bypasses the victim’s judgment entirely.

For a broader look at how these schemes play out across California, the top 10 most common probate, trust, and estate battles offers useful context.

California’s Statutory Presumptions Against Certain Transfers

California Probate Code section 21380 creates a powerful legal tool for challenging suspicious transfers. When a donative transfer  –  a gift made through a will or trust  –  is made to certain categories of people, the law presumes the transfer was the product of fraud or undue influence. The burden then shifts to the recipient to prove otherwise.

The presumption applies to the person who drafted the instrument, anyone who transcribed it while in a fiduciary relationship with the transferor, a care custodian of a dependent adult transferor during the period of care or within 90 days before or after, and people related by blood or affinity within the third degree to any of the above  –  as well as cohabitants, employees, and law firm partners or shareholders connected to the drafter.

To overcome the presumption, the recipient must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the transfer was not the product of fraud or undue influence. Where the transfer was made to the drafter of the instrument or to someone closely connected to the drafter, the presumption is conclusive  –  it cannot be rebutted at all. And if a beneficiary fails to rebut the presumption successfully, they may be required to pay all costs of the proceeding, including attorney’s fees.

This statutory framework is one of the strongest tools available to families challenging suspicious estate transfers in California. Attorneys handling these cases in Santa Clara and Bay Area courts rely on it frequently.

Case Pattern: Drafter as Beneficiary

A trust attorney drafted amendments that named himself as a substantial beneficiary of an elderly client’s trust. After the client died, the family challenged the transfers under Probate Code section 21380. Because the presumption against transfers to a drafter is conclusive, the family did not need to prove fraudulent intent  –  the burden fell entirely on the drafter, who could not overcome it.

Filing Deadlines: Why Timing Is Everything

Fraud claims in estate litigation are time-sensitive. Missing a deadline can extinguish an otherwise solid case, regardless of how clear the evidence may be.

For will contests, the timeline depends on where things stand in the probate process. If a probate petition has not yet been filed, an objection can be raised before filing. Once a petition is filed, the objection must be submitted before the hearing on that petition. After the personal representative has been appointed, challengers have only 120 days from the date of appointment to file a petition to revoke probate of the will.

Trust contests carry their own deadlines under Probate Code section 16061.8. A contest must be filed within 120 days of notification that the trust has become irrevocable, or within 60 days of the date a copy of the trust terms is mailed or personally delivered to the beneficiary  –  whichever is later.

These windows close fast. Families who delay while grieving, or while trying to gather information informally, can find themselves barred from court. If you have concerns about a will or trust, the right time to consult an attorney is now. Families in the Bay Area can also review Oakland estate litigation resources for local context.

Key Definitions

• Actual fraud: Intentional deception used to cause another person to act to their detriment, including false statements, concealment of facts, or broken promises.
• Constructive fraud: A breach of fiduciary duty that misleads another person to their disadvantage, even without deliberate dishonest intent.
• Fraud in the inducement: Deception that causes a testator or trust maker to execute or amend an estate plan they would not have created had they known the truth.
• Fraud in the execution: Misrepresenting the nature of a document so that a person signs something they do not understand or intend.
• Donative transfer: A gift made through a will, trust, or other estate planning instrument.
• Presumption of fraud: A legal inference, created by statute, that a transfer was fraudulent  –  which shifts the burden of proof to the recipient.
• Clear and convincing evidence: A heightened standard of proof requiring that the evidence be highly and substantially more likely to be true than untrue.
• Conclusive presumption: A presumption that cannot be rebutted by any evidence  –  it is treated as established fact by operation of law.
• Trust contest: A legal proceeding challenging the validity of a trust or one of its provisions, subject to strict statutory deadlines.
• Will contest: A legal proceeding challenging the validity of a will, typically on grounds of fraud, undue influence, or lack of capacity.

What to Do Next

• Look for signs of isolation  –  were communications between the deceased and certain family members blocked or discouraged in the months before death?
• Get copies of all versions of the will or trust, including any amendments, as early as possible.
• Try to avoid confronting suspected bad actors directly before speaking with an attorney, as this can complicate litigation.
• Look for documents the deceased may have signed that they did not understand  –  medical records, financial records, and correspondence can help establish context.
• Get a timeline together: when did the estate plan change, who was present, and who benefited?
• Look into whether the person who drafted the will or trust also received a gift under it  –  this triggers California’s statutory presumption.
• Try to avoid waiting to consult an attorney, since trust and will contest deadlines are strict and unforgiving.
• Review how to choose the right probate lawyer before making a decision about representation.
• Call Hackard Law at (916) 313-3030 to discuss your case with our team.
• You can also reach us through our contact page to schedule a consultation.

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