Also known as: written revocation
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A method of revoking a will by executing a subsequent instrument that expresses the intent to revoke and satisfies the formal requirements for a valid will. The subsequent writing must qualify as an attested or holographic will under the Wills Act formalities.
A method of revoking a will by executing a subsequent instrument that expresses the intent to revoke and satisfies the formal requirements for a valid will. The subsequent writing must qualify as an attested or holographic will under the Wills Act formalities.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A method of revoking an offer by a subsequent writing that reaches the offeree when the writing comes into the offeree's possession or is deposited in a place the offeree has authorized for such communications.
Cathy emailed a revocation of her purchase offer to Felicity. Felicity printed and signed an acceptance and placed it in the metal mailbox at the cooperative's scale house, the spot where farmers customarily leave delivery tickets for the cooperative. The acceptance was received when deposited in that authorized place, before the revocation reached Felicity.
A method of revoking an offer by a subsequent writing that reaches the offeree when the writing comes into the offeree's possession or is deposited in a place the offeree has authorized for such communications.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Decedent executed a document titled Revocation of Missing Will(s) that expressed clear intent to revoke prior wills. The document satisfied the formalities required for a valid will under the probate code. The court held that the execution of this subsequent writing revoked the earlier will.
The subsequent writing must qualify as a valid will by meeting the Wills Act formalities for either an attested will or a holographic will. It must also express the intent to revoke the prior will, either expressly or by inconsistency.
Supporting sources
Writing revoked on a photocopy does not qualify as a revocatory act under the statute because the destructive act must affect the original will or a writing that itself qualifies as a will. A separate revocation document that meets will formalities is required instead.
Supporting sources
A written revocation is received when the writing comes into the possession of the person addressed or is deposited in a place the person has authorized for such communications. Receipt occurs at that moment, not upon dispatch.
…that it existed until about a month after the death when she found it in her desk drawer. [^3]: As to the necessity of a written revocation of a declaration of trust when the res involves an interest in real property see Coleman v. Coleman , 48 Ariz. 337, 61 P.2d 441 (1936).