Ajudani v. Walker, 177 S.W.3d 415 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2005, no pet).
A seven page consecutively numbered handwritten document was offered
for probate as Decedent’s will. The first six pages contain discussions
of various matters which arguably relate sufficiently to the disposition
of Decedent’s property at death to show testamentary intent. None of
these six pages contain Decedent’s signature. The seventh page is a
power of attorney by which Decedent granted an attorney the power to
handle various real property transactions. This page contains Decedent’s
signature. The trial court granted a summary judgment that Decedent did
not sign the alleged will (pages one through six), page seven was a
separate document (a power of attorney), and the signature on the power
of attorney could not be treated as being on the alleged will.
The appellate court affirmed. The court explained that although Decedent
numbered the power of attorney as page seven, it was nonetheless a
separate document. The court explained that the first six pages were a
“unit” – they were written on the same type of paper and page six had a
postscript written in the margin showing that page six was the end of
the purported holographic will. In addition, evidence showed that
Decedent signed page seven before finishing pages one through six. The
court concluded that the alleged holographic will and the power of
attorney are “unambiguously two separate documents.” Id. at 419.
Accordingly, Decedent’s signature on the power of attorney cannot be
used to provide the signature which a holographic will needs to be valid
under Probate Code § 59.
Moral: Home made holographic wills continue to be a source of
litigation. Will preparation should be left to a licensed attorney with
expertise in estate planning.