Minnesota court reverses reopening of 300-acre farm estate over 1989 will

A Minnesota inheritance dispute over a 300-acre farm has taken another turn after an appeals court reversed a lower court's decision to reopen a deceased farmer's estate, years after a second will surfaced. In a September 8, 2026, ruling, the Minnesota Court of Appeals held that a court's failure to meet a statutory requirement for medical-assistance claims clearance did not deprive it of the authority to decide the estate case. The decision restored the legal standing of a 2017 property decree that had been set aside, according to the court's published opinion in In re the Estate of Clarence Vatthauer.The case centres on two wills signed by Clarence Vatthauer, who owned and farmed approximately 300 acres of productive farmland and cattle pasture in Red Lake County, Minnesota.