You are here: / / Surrogate’s Court Should Have Held a Hearing to Determine the Validity...

Surrogate’s Court Should Have Held a Hearing to Determine the Validity of a Handwritten Will Supported by the Affidavits of Two Attesting Witnesses—If Valid, the 2012 Handwritten Will Would Have Revoked the 2002 Will

The Fourth Department reversed Surrogate’s Court and ordered that a hearing be held to determine whether a 2012 will revoked a 2002 will.  The 2012 will was handwritten and included some confusing language, but it was supported by the affidavits of two attesting witnesses.  There was sufficient evidence of the validity of the 2012 will to warrant a hearing:

We conclude that petitioner demonstrated a substantial basis for contesting the 2002 will. Execution of a subsequent will revokes a former will if the subsequent will is “so inconsistent with the former will that the two cannot stand together,” even in the absence of an express revocation clause in the subsequent will … . Here, the 2002 will named respondent as the sole beneficiary, but the 2012 will named petitioner as the sole beneficiary and purported to dispose of all of decedent’s property. We therefore conclude that the provisions of the 2002 will are so inconsistent with those of the 2012 will that, if the Surrogate were “satisfied with the genuineness of the [2012] will and the validity of its execution” (SCPA 1408 [1]), the 2012 will would revoke the 2002 will. Thus, in this case, whether petitioner had a reasonable probability of successfully vacating probate of the 2002 will was dependent upon whether he could prove, through competent evidence, that the 2012 will was genuine and duly executed and attested …. Matter of Gehr, 2014 NY Slip Op 03049, 4th Dept 5-2-14

 

You might also like
A COURT CANNOT MANDATE A SPECIFIC RELIGIOUS EXERCISE FOR A CHILD (ORDERING THAT A CHILD ATTEND A SPECIFIC CHURCH FOR EXAMPLE); RATHER, THE COURT SHOULD DESIGNATE A PARENT TO HAVE DECISION-MAKING AUTHORITY OVER A CHILD’S RELIGIOUS EDUCATION AND EXCERCISE (FOURTH DEPT).
MOTHER DEMONSTRATED CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES RELATED TO EXCESSIVE PUNISHMENT BY HUSBAND; FAMILY COURT REVERSED, CUSTODY AWARDED TO MOTHER.
DEFENDANT CITY PAVED A DRIVEWAY CONNECTING A ROAD TO A PAVED PARK PATH, DEFENDANT DRIVER DROVE UP THE DRIVEWAY TO THE PAVED PATH WHERE PLAINTIFFS HAD BEEN WALKING THEIR DOGS, MAINTENANCE OF A PARK IS A PROPRIETARY NOT GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTION, NO GOVERNMENTAL IMMUNITY, CITY’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT RELIED SOLELY ON GAPS IN PLAINTIFFS’ PROOF AND SHOULD HAVE BEEN DENIED (FOURTH DEPT).
THE MAJORITY DETERMINED THE PEOPLE DID NOT EXERCISE DUE DILIGENCE IN LOCATING REQUESTED DISCOVERY MATERIALS; THE INDICTMENT WAS PROPERLY DISMISSED ON SPEEDY TRIAL GROUNDS; A TWO-JUSTICE DISSENT ARGUED THE TIME WHEN THE OMNIBUS MOTIONS WERE UNDER CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CHARGED TO THE PEOPLE (FOURTH DEPT).
Suppressed Statement Improperly Allowed to Be Used to Impeach Defendant—Defendant Did Not Open the Door for Use of the Statement by Contradicting It On Direct
THE COURT REVERSED THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS BECAUSE THE BOARD FAILED TO FOLLOW THE PROCEDURE MANDATED BY THE TOWN CODE WHEN IT GRANTED AREA VARIANCES, THE COURT ALSO NOTED THAT A DECLARATORY JUDGMENT IS NOT AN AVAILABLE REMEDY FOR CHALLENGING AN ADMINISTRATIVE DETERMINATION (FOURTH DEPT)
THE IMPOSITION OF TWO CONSECUTIVE PERIODS OF POSTRELEASE SUPERVISION WAS ILLEGAL (FOURTH DEPT).
Procedure for Invalidation of a Stipulation to the Record

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

Low-Income Families’ Challenges to Child Care Copayment Regulation Re... Pretrial Motion to Dismiss the Accusatory Instrument, Arguing the Facts Alleged...