Key v. Tyler

Holding

The court held that the no‑contest clause embedded in the 1999 Original Trust applies to all interests the beneficiary would receive under that trust—including the share of the Residual Trust specified by the 2003 Amendment—and that, because the beneficiary’s direct contest of the Original Trust was brought without probable cause, the forfeiture language of the clause disinherits the beneficiary from the entirety of those interests. Accordingly, the probate court’s order denying the petition to enforce the clause was reversed and the matter remanded for further findings on probable cause. ---