M Civ JI 170.13 Will Contests: Requirements for Witnessing Will

A will is witnessed in the manner required by law if [ each witness / at least two witnesses ] signed the document within a reasonable time after [ he / she ] did any one of the following:

(a) saw the decedent sign the document, or

(b) heard the decedent say or otherwise acknowledge that the signature on the document was [ his / her ] signature, or

(c) heard the decedent say or otherwise acknowledge that the document was [ his / her ] will.

It is not necessary that each witness be a witness to the same act of the decedent as just described to you.

The witnesses are not required to sign the document at the same time.

Comment

MCL 700.2502(1)(c).

Section 2502(1)(c) of the Estates and Protected Individuals Code (EPIC) departs from prior law by permitting each witness to sign “within a reasonable time” after seeing the testator sign the will or acknowledge the signature or will as his or her own. The new language derives from §2-502 of the Uniform Probate Code (UPC) (1990) and the UPC comment explains: “There is, however, no requirement that the witnesses sign before the testator’s death; in a given case, the reasonable-time requirement could be satisfied even if the witnesses sign after the testator’s death.” Michigan case law under the predecessor statute (MCL 700.122(1)) held that witnesses could not sign after the testator’s death. In re Estate of Mikeska, 140 Mich App 116; 362 NW2d 906 (1985).

For effective date provisions of EPIC, see MCL 700.8101 reproduced in the Introduction to this chapter.

History

M Civ JI 170.13 was added January 1984. Amended March 2001.​