› Will expressed to be made in contemplation of marriage
Succession
› Construction and effect of testamentary dispositions
› Ascertainment of testator's intention
Succession
› Construction
› Home-made wills
Quick Take
1The word 'fiancée' used in a will is not a mere descriptor of the beneficiary's status but inherently conveys the testator's contemplation of marriage, sufficient to engage the statutory exception to revocation by marriage under s 18(3) of the Succession Act 2023 (SA), following In re Coleman, decd. [1976] Ch 1 and departing from Burton v McGregor [1953] NZLR 487.
2For a will to be 'expressed to be made in contemplation of marriage', the contemplation must be expressed in the will itself through ordinary principles of construction — no particular form of words is required, especially in a home-made will — but the contemplation must operate on the whole of the will, not merely an individual gift, and the armchair principle may be deployed to determine this.
3Typographical errors in a home-made will (such as 'dequeath' for 'bequeath' and 'fiances' for 'fiancée') are not invalidating where the context makes it sufficiently clear which words were intended, and the will may be construed accordingly without a formal rectification application.
