When Axioms Collide

Authors

Jeffrey Daniel Haskell, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Abstract

Recently, American courts have begun to adopt an increasingly liberal approach to will construction and reformation. This trend reflects the continuing battle between two elemental axioms of wills law: (i) observing the formalities imposed by the Wills Act, and (ii) admitting extrinsic evidence to effectuate the intent of the testator. As recent case law suggests, the former axiom has been steadily losing ground to the latter. This assault on the previously inviolate stronghold of wills formalities has come in two waves: remedies given for execution errors, and remedies for content errors. This Note establishes that a third wave should follow-remedies given for mistake of fact.

Disciplines

Estates and Trusts | Law

Recommended Citation

Jeffrey D. Haskell, When Axioms Collide, 15 Cardozo L. Rev. 817 (1993).
Available at: https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/clr/vol15/iss3/7