How to Ensure Will Signatures are Unimpeachable in Maryland

Introduction: Wills are Often Challenged

Given the fact that wills transmit resources, readers shouldn’t be too surprised to learn that wills are very often challenged by interested parties. What might surprise readers, however, is the range of challenges which have been made to wills, as this range reflects the desperation of those who want to benefit from a will. When copious resources be involved, interested parties sometimes resort to measures which are downright absurd, or which show little chance of success before any objective court. We see this same sort of behavior in the context of family law, as parties will often resort to measures which offer little chance of reward but may satisfy some need to put forth a “last ditch” effort.  

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The key point is that, if you plan to draft a will, you need to draft the will from a “defensive” standpoint, understanding that interested parties may try virtually anything to take a piece of the resources at stake. In this post, we will identify and discuss several things which testators should do to better prevent possible challenges.

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Make Sure the Signature Page is “Affixed” to the Will

As we discussed in a previous post which referenced the famous Shane v. Wooley (1921) case, not having the signature page “affixed” or attached to the main parts of the will has led to challenges. The logic underlying this kind of challenge is simple: if the signature page isn’t physically connected to the remainder of the will, there may be an argument that the signatures aren’t actually associated with the will itself. This argument might be raised even if there are clear reasons to infer this association (i.e. names and other indicators). To remove this possible challenge, simply be certain that the signature page is affixed, ideally by staple.  

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Make Sure the Signature Page Follows the Pagination / Numbering System

Whenever a multi-page will be drafted, the drafter should always include a pagination, or numbering, system. In other words, if the will is 10 pages long, for example, then the bottom of the first page should include “Page 1 of 10.” Because the page including signatures will also follow this system, this produces a clear link between that page and the rest of the document. In this way, even if the pages aren’t physically connected, the association between the signature page and the remainder of the document can be readily seen. If, for instance, the signature page is “Page 10 of 10,” then the whole document will be incomplete without that particular page, and so there is a very clear association.

Make Sure Signatures Occur at the Same Time & Location

Consistent with Maryland law, testators need to have multiple people sign a will in order to produce a legally defensible document. Ideally, you want to have all the witnesses sign at the same time and in the same location. Of course, for various reasons, this might not be possible, but testators should make an attempt to orchestrate their will in this manner whenever they have the opportunity. The reason is because having witnesses sign in the presence of each other provides an additional layer of security against potential challenges. If, for instance, an interested party attempts to challenge the authenticity of signatures, for whatever reason, the witnesses now  have credibility when they testify as to their authenticity; witnesses can swear that they saw a given person sign, and this testimony can then be corroborated by other witnesses.

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Contact the Murphy Law Firm for Additional Information

Readers who want to know more about will signatures, challenging signatures, other potential challenges to a will, making a will unimpeachable, or any other related estate planning topic, contact one of the estate planning attorneys at the Murphy Law Firm today by calling 240-219-1187.

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