does a will have to be notarized in mississippi

DOES A WILL HAVE TO BE NOTARIZED IN MISSISSIPPI TRIAL

It is true that “n determining the testator’s intent, in the absence of ambiguity, this Court is limited to the ‘four corners’ of the will itself.” Estate of Blount v. Further, a testator’s will should be enforced so as to avoid clearly unintended consequences. of Estates in Mississippi § 9-4, at 296 (3d ed. Weems, Mississippi Practice Series: Wills & Admin. Annual Conference Methodist Church, 492 So. It is well established that “a will speaks at the death of the testator.” Johnson v.

“Our polestar consideration, as always, is the intent of the testator, the right our law has given each competent adult to direct from the grave the disposition of worldly goods.” Tinnin v. The court refused to consider the debts owed because they were not listed “within the four corners of the will.” Finally, the court ruled that Scott was not allowed to deduct any debt that was not “contained within the will itself.” The court found that the will was not ambiguous and any evidence concerning potential debts owed to the decedent many years prior to her death was “merely an allegation” of potential debts owed. The written statement of debts ostensibly owed the decedent is merely an allegation by the decedent of debts owed at a particular point in time, which point was almost nine years prior to her death. The Court specifically finds that the will is not ambiguous, and should be construed and interpreted solely by the terms of and on the four corners of the will itself. Sandra accurately advises the Court that parol evidence cannot be utilized to interpret the testator’s will unless the terms of the will are ambiguous. The Court declines to find that such document should be considered a part of, or read together with, the Last Will and Testament. In the opinion and judgment, the court stated the following: Scott argues that the court erred in denying his request to use extrinsic documentation to determine each child’s debt. Brown and Walker, decided May 19, 2020, the COA unanimously reversed and remanded. The chancellor denied the estate’s request to consider evidence outside the will, citing the four-corners principle, and the estate appealed. It spelled out each child’s debt Sandra’s was $85,644, and Tracy’s was zero.

DOES A WILL HAVE TO BE NOTARIZED IN MISSISSIPPI TRIAL

The estate filed a complaint for declaratory judgment, and at trial sought to prove the debts by a notarized statement that Sarah Walker had prepared in 2007. That was the conundrum presented to the trial court in a dispute between Sandra Brown and Tracy Walker and the Estate of their mother, Sarah Walker. How is the estate to prove it except by extrinsic evidence?

The will included no itemization of any debt, but there had been loans by the decedent to several of the children. I have five adult children … to whom I leave in equal shares, property I possess, whether real, personal or mixed (less any debt owing to me by any heir at the time of my death, to come out of that child’s part). It is black-letter law in Mississippi that a court called upon to interpret a will is bound by the intent of the testator, and the court is limited to the four corners of the will itself.īut what is the court to do when the will contains a provision such as this:

Does a will have to be notarized in mississippi