The next court date in a lawsuit challenging the disposition of the estate of the late Sen. John Nejedly has been set for Nov. 3 and in the meantime, the various parties have agreed to participate in mediation.

Nejedly’s eldest son, Contra Costa Community College Trustee John T. Nejedly, has accused his brother and sister, Contra Costa Central Sanitary District member Jim Nejedly and Contra Costa Supervisor Mary Nejedly Piepho, of conspiring to turn his elderly father against him.

But according to court documents filed in Contra Costa County Superior Court, the late senator intentionally stripped John T. of a share of the estate, which consists largely of a home on 13 wooded acres in Walnut Creek, after their relationship soured under the pressure of his son’s marital problems, drug and alcohol abuse. The senator also sought to keep the Walnut Creek property intact rather than see it subdivided.

John A. Nejedly died at age 91 on Sept. 19, 2006.