Estate disputes can happen for a variety of reasons. Maybe a very large estate is divided unequally, so beneficiaries get into disputes about how the money should be split up. Perhaps certain assets are left to people jointly, such as a family home or vacation home, leading to conflicts over what should be done with that asset.
Most of these types of disputes revolve around very valuable assets. The reason for the dispute is often that everyone is fighting over how the money should be divided, and they want to get as much as possible for themselves.
There is another type of dispute that can occur, which revolves around items with only sentimental value. These may not be worth very much money, but that can actually make the disputes more difficult to resolve.
Why does this happen?
This often occurs because items with sentimental value give adult children a connection to their parent who passed away. These items could be very simple: Sets of dishes, artwork, a family Bible, a book collection or Christmas decorations. None of these items has much financial value, but they connect the children to the past, so they may all want these heirlooms, perhaps intending to pass them to their own children.
Part of the trouble with resolving these disputes is that, because the items have a low financial value, it does not make sense to sell the items and split up the money. Beneficiaries have to find a solution where they divide tangible assets amongst themselves.
While going through a contentious dispute, be sure you know exactly what legal steps to take.