The court considered the requirements for a valid execution of a will.
Held: The court must be satisfied that the witness had signed the will with the intention of attesting the testator’s signature or of attesting the will. Phillimore J discussed the strength of the presumption in favour of due execution, saying: ‘The force of the presumption or maxim varies with all the circumstances. Where a document is entirely regular in form it may be very strong; but where, as here, it is irregular and unusual in form, the maxim cannot apply with the same force.’ The question he had to decide was ”whether, in all the circumstances of this particular case, it is more probable that what was done was done as it ought to have been done to render the will valid.’
Judges:
Phillimore J
Citations:
[1961] 1 WLR 892
Cited by:
Cited – Sherrington v Sherrington CA 22-Mar-2005
The deceased, a solicitor of long standing, was said to have signed his will without having read it, and had two witnesses sign the document without them knowing what they were attesting. He had remarried, and the will was challenged by his . .
Appeal from – In the Estate of Bercovitz, deceased; Canning v Enever CA 1962
Upheld – The court must be satisfied that the witness had signed the will with the intention of attesting the testator’s signature or of attesting the will. . .
Cited – Re Beadle 1974
Although it is unnecessary that the attesting witnesses know that the document they are signing is a will, it is necessary to show that the attesting witnesses when signing the will intended by their signatures to verify that the testator had signed . .
Cited – Lim v Thompson ChD 14-Oct-2009
The claimant sought revocation of letters of administration granted to the defendant, asserting the existence of a valid will. The defendant said that the will was not validly executed. Only a copy had been found, and one with only one witness. One . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Wills and Probate
Updated: 30 April 2022; Ref: scu.223794
