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ARTICLE · 17 MAY 2021

Holographic Will Was Invalid

Boyes Turner
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The provisions of Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 ("the Act") have been in force for over 180 years. Despite this, the question of whether a will has been validly executed continues

United KingdomFamily and Matrimonial
Ally Tow
Ally Tow

The provisions of Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 ("the Act") have been in force for over 180 years.  Despite this, the question of whether a will has been validly executed continues to come before the courts and this was the position in the recent case of Re Robert Whalley (deceased) V Ebrahimi [2021].

The issue before the court was a simple one of fact, namely did two individuals validly witness the will of the late Professor Robert Whalley ("Robert") dated 3 May 2018 ("the 2018 will") on 3 May 2018 in accordance with the Act?  If the answer to that question was yes then the relevant will would be valid but if the answer was no then a further issue would arise, namely whether an early will of Robert dated 17 September 2012 ("the 2012 will") was validly executed.

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