Estate of Ben-Ali

After Hassan Ben-Ali's son Taruk secretly died of a drug overdose in 2004, Hassan concealed the death for years - even from Taruk's wife Wendelyn Wilburn (plaintiff) - while forging Taruk's signature on documents to maintain control of an apartment building Taruk nominally owned; Hassan later committed suicide in 2008, and among his belongings was found a purported will of Taruk's, leaving personal property to Wilburn but the building and other assets to Hassan, naming Hassan executor, and bearing a signature reading "Wendy Ben-Ali" plus a second, illegible witness signature. Wilburn denied signing it. The probate court found Wilburn's denial unreliable, deemed her purported signature authentic, and imputed that authenticity to the illegible second signature, denying Wilburn's will contest and admitting the document to probate on Lloyd's (defendant, Taruk's other child) petition; Wilburn appealed, arguing the will was invalidly executed and she was entitled to intestate succession instead.