Also known as: holographs · holographic · holographically · holographic will · holograph will
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A document handwritten by its author. In the law of wills a holographic will is valid without witnesses if the testator's signature and the material portions of the document appear in the testator's own handwriting.
Harper Hill sat at her kitchen table and wrote her testamentary wishes in cursive on a sheet of paper. She directed that her entire estate go to her fiancé and nothing to her son. She signed and dated the document at the bottom. After her death the court admitted the paper as a valid holographic will because the signature and material portions remained in her handwriting.
Henry Harrison wrote a letter in his own hand that left his Montana cabin to his longtime companion. The letter referred to his earlier formal will and was signed and dated. After his death the companion offered the letter for probate. The court treated the letter as a valid holographic codicil because it satisfied the handwriting and signature requirements and altered only a specific devise.
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No. Under the Uniform Probate Code only the signature and material portions need to be in the testator's handwriting. Printed letterheads or forms may be disregarded as surplusage when the handwritten text makes sense as a will on its own.
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Yes. A valid holographic will that devises land may also create an easement by express language in the same instrument. The formalities required are the same as those for any other testamentary devise of an interest in land.
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No. The Uniform Probate Code expressly provides that a holographic will is valid whether or not it is witnessed. Notarization is an alternative only for attested wills under the witnessed-will provisions.
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Yes. A handwritten letter that makes a specific bequest and refers to a prior will qualifies as a holographic codicil when it meets the signature and material-portion requirements. Courts have upheld such letters as valid amendments to formal wills.
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…created a parcel of approximately 90 acres and are the primary subject of this appeal. ¶8 On May 3, 1989, Kuralt executed a holographic will which stated as follows: May 3, 1989 In the event of my death, I bequeath to Patricia Elizabeth Shannon all my interest in land, buildings, furnishings and personal belongings on…