Despite the fact that a person’s last will is his undeniable right to dispose of property acquired by his labor, a will often left becomes a cause of discord among the relatives of the deceased. Successors often disagree with the distribution of property, which becomes known after the opening of the inheritance. In this case, they have a question about whether it is possible to change or cancel a will. This issue is clearly regulated by law.
Voluntary cancellation and change
A testamentary disposition is the exclusive right of the testator, and none of the relatives and potential heirs can exert pressure on the expression of the will of the testator. In accordance with Russian law, a will is a unilateral transaction.
Under certain circumstances, an already compiled and certified document that distributed property between the heirs may be partially or altered altogether. 
How to cancel a will for an apartment during life
To do this, it is enough for the compiler to contact the notary's office and write a statement about the cancellation or amendment of the document drawn up earlier.
The application must contain information about the identity of the testator (name and address), information about the notary who certified the document, the address of the office and the direct order on cancellation (invalidation of the previous will). The application is certified and executed in accordance with the requirements of the law, after which the testator has the right to draw up a new testament document. 
Consequences of cancellation
The new text of the document may partially contain the previous instructions of the compiler or may be changed in full.
A will that is canceled by a subsequent will becomes null and void. A new document drawn up is recognized as the last will of the testator, even if it does not contain information about the cancellation of the previous one.
When a new will can be revoked
The following circumstances are an exception:
- If the last document left by the testator is declared invalid (in court), the previous will shall be subject to execution.
- The last will of a citizen, drawn up in extraordinary circumstances, may be recognized as the last will of the deceased, if its content does not contradict the contents of a previously prepared testament document.
- Cancellation of testamentary disposition on inheritance rights of cash deposits is possible only by order of the testator in the bank where the deposit is located.
Invalidation
A way to cancel a will for an apartment, other than voluntary, in vivo is impossible.
After the death of the testator, the relatives of the deceased, his legal heirs have the right to cancel the testamentary disposition in court. Perhaps this is in case the recognition of a lifetime will is invalid.
Before canceling a will, the court must have sufficient legal grounds. The collection of evidence is the prerogative of the plaintiff.
Challenging the will
Persons whose interests are violated (potential heirs) have the right to appeal to court and challenge the last will of the deceased. The right to appeal to the court with such a statement appears only after the opening of the inheritance and the announcement of the will, but in no case during the life of the testator.
A will cannot be challenged on the basis of descriptions available in the text of the document and minor violations of the order of execution.
Challenging individual testament orders does not lead to the cancellation of the document as a whole. The court may invalidate those orders of the testator that violate the rights of individual heirs, and leave the remaining testamentary dispositions (not bearing violations of the rights of interested parties) in force.
Grounds for contesting
Before canceling a will, the successors should have good reason for going to court. The following can serve as them:
- Violation of the rights of mandatory heirs. This is the most common ground in judicial practice. If the testator did not include in the list of heirs, who are legally entitled to receive an obligatory share in the inheritance, then such a share will be allocated in court.
- The will of a person who at the time of the execution of the will was not able to give a report to his actions or who was in a state of passion is subject to cancellation. Suppose the testator was mentally ill and did not realize what he was doing, or was experiencing strong emotional unrest. Of course, if such a fact can be proved in court.
- Testamentary disposition left under pressure. If violent acts were used against the testator and pressure was put in place, possibly threatening the health and life of his or her relatives, then, taking into account the confirmed facts, the court can cancel the will in full.
- Doubts about the authenticity of the will can serve as a basis for cancellation.
Ways of Proof
Since the invalidity of a document is recognized only in court, then the claims put forward must be proved.
Can a testament be canceled and how realistic is it? The evidence itself should be sufficient to make a positive decision and not only be based on the conclusions of interested parties.
Consider what may serve as evidence.
An heir relating to mandatory by law, must provide documents confirming his consanguinity or marital relations with the deceased:
- If the heir is a minor or disabled child, a birth certificate or disability certificate is required.
- The disabled spouse of the deceased provides documents confirming his disability and marital relations (marriage certificate, disability certificate, pension certificate or certificate from the FIU).
- Disabled dependents of the deceased will need a little more evidence. How to cancel a will in this case? Such heirs, if they were not with the deceased in family relations, it is necessary to prove the fact of living with the testator and being on its contents. The length of stay must be at least one year before death.
Disabled relatives who are not part of the circle of heirs called to accept the inheritance will need to prove the fact of their maintenance by the testator, regardless of cohabitation. 
Before canceling a will, it is necessary to collect all the surviving documentary evidence that the deceased provided maintenance to the obligatory heir, as well as the testimony of witnesses.
- If the claims are based on the unhealthy mental state of the testator due to illness or affect at the time of writing, you will have to resort to a post-mortem forensic psychiatric examination or a comprehensive forensic psychological and psychiatric examination if there are sufficient grounds for this.
- If, according to the plaintiffs, the will was made under someone’s pressure or as a result of violent acts, then the evidence may include: testimony, video and photography, audio recordings and the like.
- When contesting a will that casts doubt on its authenticity, a handwriting examination is appointed.
According to statistics, the most commonly used basis for the cancellation of a will is the second of the listed reasons. This in itself is not surprising, due to the fact that usually quite elderly people are the testators, who are not always responsible for their actions due to illnesses and age-related changes.
Application Filing Features
Proceedings to challenge the final order of the deceased are the jurisdiction of the federal district courts.
How to cancel a will and how soon can this be done? The total statute of limitations for claims to revoke this document is three years.
If the ground for cancellation is proof of the unsatisfactory state of the deceased at the time of compiling the document, then the limitation period is reduced to one year.
The following persons have the right to appeal to the court challenging the testament document:
- Heirs applying for a mandatory share in the testator's inheritance.
- Heirs who were included in a previously executed will.
- State bodies acting on behalf of the state, claiming to inherit the property of the deceased (escheated property).
If the court makes a decision to revoke the last will of a citizen, that will, which was made earlier, is subject to execution. 
If the deceased did not leave another will, then after the cancellation of the last will of the deceased, the relatives of the testator are called upon to inherit in accordance with the sequence determined by law.
Insignificant testament
Recognition of testamentary dispositions null and void does not require judicial proof and entails its cancellation.
The nullity of a unilateral transaction is recognized if the following reasons exist:
- The document was compiled with gross violations of the requirements of the law (no essential information about the testator is indicated, there is no signature or the document was signed by a trustee (the distributor) while the testator was able to independently sign, there may be no stamp on the document).
- If, at the time the will was made, the testator was declared legally incompetent in court. This basis does not apply to cases where a decision on the recognition of incapacity was made after the preparation of the document.
- The document is certified (certified) by a person who does not have a legal right to do so.
In order to declare a will made with substantial violations of the law null and void, it is enough to contact the notary office with the appropriate statement.
Before submitting an application for acceptance of the inheritance, the receiver must put a notary to the notary that the will is not revoked. The heir indicated in the document must come to the notary public, certifying the last will of the deceased, with his passport and death certificate (original). The notary will make a mark in the form of a stamp or inscription.