No-Contest Clauses: How They Work in Wills and Trusts

This overview reflects legal analysis originally provided by Mary Randolph, J.D., UC Berkeley School of Law.

If you worry that a relative might fight your will or trust in court once you're gone, you might consider adding a "no-contest clause" to the document.

These provisions aim to keep unhappy family members from filing a challenge. The mechanism is simple: anyone who sues to overturn your will or trust and loses forfeits whatever they were set to inherit.

Here's an example of one, written in the dense legal phrasing typical of these clauses:

"If any beneficiary under this will seeks to obtain in any proceeding in any court an adjudication that this will or any of its provisions is void, or seeks otherwise to void, nullify, or set aside this will or any of its provisions, then the right of that person to take any interest given to him or her by this will shall be determined as it would have been determined had such person predeceased the execution of this will without issue."

• How a no-contest clause functions
• State laws that restrict these clauses
• Move carefully

How a no-contest clause functions

A no-contest clause only deters someone who actually stands to lose something by suing. Imagine you have two adult children, and one struggles to manage money. If you leave him $10,000, he may hesitate to challenge your will, since losing the case under the no-contest clause would cost him that $10,000.

But if you leave that same person nothing, or almost nothing, the clause loses its bite. Going back to the example: if your spendthrift son inherits nothing under your will, he has nothing to lose by contesting it. If he stays quiet, he still gets nothing. If he sues and wins—getting the will thrown out—he'd inherit half your estate under state inheritance law. Of course, contesting a will still costs money, so that's a real deterrent on its own.

State laws that restrict these clauses

Adding a no-contest clause can create a false sense of protection, because courts don't always enforce them. Whether one actually works—or works at all—depends heavily on the law where you live.

Florida courts, for example, simply won't enforce them. There, a beneficiary who sues unsuccessfully to invalidate a will still receives their share under its terms. (Fla. Stat. § 732.517 (2024).)

Roughly half the states will enforce a no-contest clause only if the person suing lacked "probable cause"—meaning they had no legitimate reason to sue. Courts don't want to punish someone for bringing a valid claim, such as when a will was signed by someone lacking capacity or under pressure from a manipulative relative. It's worth considering this from your own side, too: you likely wouldn't want a no-contest clause to stop your child from challenging a will that really was the product of fraud or undue influence against you.

Move carefully

Most people never need to think seriously about a will or trust contest. But if you have genuine reason to expect one, it's worth speaking with an estate planning attorney familiar with your state. Laws on this topic vary by state, so the right approach depends on where you live and your specific situation. Once you explain who you're worried about and why, a lawyer can suggest strategies tailored to that risk.

Beyond a no-contest clause, there are other ways to reduce the odds of a challenge after your death. You can also structure an inheritance so a beneficiary can't blow through it quickly—for instance, by using a "spendthrift" trust.