How to interpret the contents of the will

Testament – Reflections on the can of resolutions of ultimate Court III CZP 24/20

Who can draw up a will?

The making of a will is an act that anyone with the full capacity for legal action can do. The will is written by 1 who wants to establish:

1. How his luck will be divided after his death.
2. To whom his possessions will be transferred.

Forms of will

Polish law provides for various forms of will. 3 simple forms of will are:

1. a will of your own,
2. a notarial will,
3. an allographic will, or orally formulated by the testator, in the presence of 2 witnesses, before 1 of the bodies or officials listed in the Act, written in the minutes and signed by them.

The tester in the will disposes of assets in the event of his death. In the case of drawing up a will in notarial form, the notary may instruct the testator of the legal requirements concerning the will. If necessary, it will aid to formulate a will in specified a way that it does not origin any explanation difficulties. The explanation of the will of the heir following the beginning of the inheritance should not be difficult.

Hand-held Testament

However, it may be different in the case of an explanation of a declaration of will recorded in the will of his own hand. It happens that the individual making the will so formulates its content that it is very hard for a alien who interprets the will to find what the testator truly meant and how he wanted to dispose of his property in the event of death.

In the fresh resolution of the ultimate Court of 26 February 2021 (file number: III CZP 24/20), the question of appropriate explanation of the will was considered and another way of interpreting Art. 948 k.c. The ultimate Court stated that:

“The interpretations of the will must be made taking into account the circumstances of its preparation, which may be determined by any means of evidence.”

This, unfortunately, does not dispel all interpretational doubts that appear on the table of individual facts and individual wordings contained in the wills.

Testament and ultimate Court Resolution III CZP 24/20

In the case which became the basis of the legal question which the ultimate Court considered in the above resolution, the courts of the first and second instance had to decide whether, in order to find the will of the heir, which in the will did not specify in a precise manner the ellipse of persons called for inheritance, the court may question what the actual will of the heir was on the basis of witness testimony, or even the individual afraid with inheritance. The explanation problem in this case was due to the vague and even general wording of the testator. The tester indicated that he was inherited by his colleagues in the photo, which he besides did not explicitly indicate.

The answer of the ultimate Court in the form of the above-mentioned resolution may seem somewhat laconic, but it is an crucial indication to the general courts that it is possible to usage various means of evidence to interpret and keep the will in force. This resolution is in line with the prevailing judicature view that Article. 948 k.c. it must be applied precisely to the explanation of the contents of the will, and to find whether a given declaration of will of the heir is simply a will in general, the general principles of explanation of the will statement, that is to say, the art. 65 § 1 k.c..

Such a position makes evidence very crucial in interpreting the words of the testator contained in the will. In addition to the proceedings, the evidence of witnesses and persons who knew the testator is besides crucial and may know what or who he meant erstwhile writing the will. These factors let the judicial procedure to find what the testator's actual will was, so that his last will is put into effect.

More information

You can get more information about the succession in our Chancellery. Zplease to direct contact or telephone number: +48 882 120 775 to arrange a visit, or online advice. Our squad of lawyers will be happy to answer all your questions.

Author: Barbara Borucka

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