The Maryland Court of Appeals rules that a will signed by the testator outside the presence of witnesses should have been admitted to probate despite the fact that one of the witnesses did not know it was a will and cannot recall seeing the testator's signature on the instrument. Slack v. Truitt (Ct. App. Md., No. 44, Feb. 12, 2002).
On July 5, 1999, Dale Slack went to the house of his neighbor, Dorothy Morgan, and asked her to sign a one-page handwritten document. On the bottom left hand side of the page, following the words 'Witnessed By,' Mr. Slack had reserved a space for witnesses' signatures. Mr. Slack did not tell Mrs. Morgan that the document was a will, nor did he draw her attention to his signature. Mrs. Morgan later testified that she thought she was signing a petition regarding development in the neighborhood, and also testified that she could not recall whether Mr. Slack had signed the document prior to asking her to sign it. Mr. Slack then left, but shortly thereafter returned and asked Mrs. Morgan's daughter, Sandra Bradley, to sign the same document. Again, Mr. Slack did not disclose that the document was his will and did not draw Mrs. Bradley's attention to his signature. Mrs. Bradley later testified that Mr. Slack had signed the document before she affixed her signature. Some two hours later, Mr. Slack committed suicide.
Mr. Slack's brother, Clinton, was appointed personal representative of the estate. Clinton Slack challenged the will on the basis that it was not properly attested to by the witnesses. The Orphans' Court and the Circuit Court denied the admission of the will to probate because Mr. Slack failed to acknowledge to the witnesses that the will was his own instrument. Terri Truitt, who received jewelry and whose husband received a third of Mr. Slack's estate under the will, appealed. The Court of Special Appeals reversed, and Clinton Slack appealed.
The Court of Appeals of Maryland affirms that the will was entitled to probate as a validly executed will. The court begins by holding that an attestation clause is not required for a presumption of due execution. After reviewing how courts in other jurisdictions have dealt with similar cases, the court concludes that because Mrs. Bradley saw Mr. Slack's signature on the instrument, her attestation was sufficient. The court acknowledges that Mrs. Morgan's failure to recall Mr. Slack's signature makes her attestation more problematic, but rules that her inability to remember the facts surrounding the will's execution is insufficient to overcome the presumption of due execution. 'If subscribing witnesses were required to recollect all the formalities prescribed by statutory requirements,' the court observes, 'few wills would be immune to attack, particularly after the passage of many years.'
To download the full text of this opinion, go to: https://www.courts.state.md.us/opinions/coa/2002/44a01.pdf
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