To consolidate and amend the law relating to the execution of wills.
[Definition of 'amendment' inserted by s. 2 (a) of Act 43 of 1992.
'Court' means a provincial or local division of the Supreme Court of South Africa or any judge thereof; [Definition of 'Court' amended by s. 1 of Act 49 of 1996.
[Definition of 'deletion' inserted by s. 2 (b) of Act 43 of 1992.
'internal law' means the law of a state or territory, excluding the rules of the international private law of that state or territory; [Definition of 'internal law' inserted by s. 2 (c) of Act 43 of 1992.
'Master' means a Master, Deputy Master or Assistant Master of the Supreme Court appointed under section 2 of the Administration of Estates Act, 1965 (Act 66 of 1965); [Definition of 'Master' substituted by s. 2 (d) of Act 43 of 1992.
'sign' includes the making of initials and, only in the case of a testator, the making of a mark, and 'signature' has a corresponding meaning; [Definition of 'sign' substituted by s. 2 (e) of Act 43 of 1992.
'will' includes a codicil and any other testamentary writing.
[Sub-para. (iv) amended by s. 20 (a) of Act 80 of 1964 and substituted by s. 3 (b) of Act 43 of 1992.
[Sub-para. (v) amended by s. 1 (a) of Act 48 of 1958 and substituted by s. 20 (b) of Act 80 of 1964 and by s. 3 (c) of Act 43 of 1992.
if the testator dies after the amendment has been identified in terms of subparagraphs (i) and (iii) but before the commissioner of oaths has made the certificate concerned, the commissioner of oaths shall as soon as possible thereafter make or complete his certificate.
[Sub-para. (iv) amended by s. 1 (b) of Act 48 of 1958 and substituted by s. 3 (e) of Act 43 of 1992.
[Para. (b) amended by s. 3 (d) of Act 43 of 1992.
[Sub-s. (1) amended by s. 1 of Act 41 of 1965 and by s. 3 (a) of Act 43 of 1992.
Any amendment made in a will executed after the said date shall for the purposes of subsection (1) be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been made after the will was executed.
[Sub-s. (2) substituted by s. 3 (f) of Act 43 of 1992.
If a court is satisfied that a document or the amendment of a document drafted or executed by a person who has died since the drafting or execution thereof, was intended to be his will or an amendment of his will, the court shall order the Master to accept that document, or that document as amended, for the purposes of the Administration of Estates Act, 1965 (Act 66 of 1965), as a will, although it does not comply with all the formalities for the execution or amendment of wills referred to in subsection (1).
[Sub-s. (3) added by s. 3 (g) of Act 43 of 1992.
may be in the form set out in Schedule 1 or 2, as the case may be. [Sub-s. (4) added by s. 3 (g) of Act 43 of 1992.
drafted another document or before his death caused such document to be drafted, by which he intended to revoke his will or a part of his will, the court shall declare the will or the part concerned, as the case may be, to be revoked.
[S. 2A inserted by s. 4 of Act 43 of 1992.
If any person dies within three months after his marriage was dissolved by a divorce or annulment by a competent court and that person executed a will before the date of such dissolution, that will shall be implemented in the same manner as it would have been implemented if his previous spouse had died before the date of the dissolution concerned, unless it appears from the will that the testator intended to benefit his previous spouse notwithstanding the dissolution of his marriage.
[S. 2B inserted by s. 4 of Act 43 of 1992.
If any descendant of a testator, excluding a minor or a mentally ill descendant, who, together with the surviving spouse of the testator, is entitled to a benefit in terms of a will renounces his right to receive such a benefit, such benefit shall vest in the surviving spouse.
If a descendant of the testator, whether as a member of a class or otherwise, would have been entitled to a benefit in terms of the provisions of a will if he had been alive at the time of death of the testator, or had not been disqualified from inheriting, or had not after the testator's death renounced his right to receive such a benefit, the descendants of that descendant shall, subject to the provisions of subsection (1), per stirpes be entitled to the benefit, unless the context of the will otherwise indicates.
[S. 2C inserted by s. 4 of Act 43 of 1992.
any benefit allocated to the children of a person, or to the members of a class of persons, mentioned in the will shall vest in the children of that person or those members of the class of persons who are alive at the time of the devolution of the benefit, or who have already been conceived at that time and who are later born alive.
In the application of this section 'will' means any writing by a person whereby he disposes of his property or any part thereof after his death.
[S. 2D inserted by s. 4 of Act 43 of 1992.
[S. 3 repealed by s. 5 of Act 43 of 1992.
not be invalid merely by reason of the form thereof, if it was executed on board a vessel or aircraft and such form complies with the internal law of the state or territory in which such vessel or aircraft was registered at the time of such execution, or with which it was otherwise most closely connected at that time.
Any requirement of the internal law of any other state or territory in terms of which a testator of a particular age or nationality or having any other personal qualification is to observe special formalities in the execution of a will, or a witness to a will is to possess certain qualifications, shall be construed as a requirement relating to form only.
If there are in force in any state or territory two or more systems of internal law relating to the form of wills, the internal law is to be applied for the purposes of this section shall be the internal law determined in accordance with any relevant rule in force in the state or territory in question or, if there is no such rule in force therein, the internal law with which the testator was most closely connected at the time of his death, if the matter is to be determined by reference to the circumstances prevailing at his death, or at the time of the execution of the will in any other case.
a will made by a person who died before the commencement of this section.
The provisions of this section shall not affect the validity of a will which but for such provisions would be valid.
[S. 3 bis inserted by s. 2 of Act 41 of 1965 and amended by s. 6 of Act 43 of 1992.
Every person of the age of sixteen years or more may make a will unless at the time of making the will he is mentally incapable of appreciating the nature and effect of his act, and the burden of proof that he was mentally incapable at that time shall rest on the person alleging the same.
Any person who attests and signs a will as a witness, or who signs a will in the presence and by direction of the testator, or who writes out the will or any part thereof in his own handwriting, and the person who is the spouse of such person at the time of the execution of the will, shall be disqualified from receiving any benefit from that will.
SUCCESSION Page 6 of 8 be thus disqualified from receiving a benefit from that will if the will concerned has been attested and signed by at least two other competent witnesses who will not receive any benefit from the will concerned.
For the purposes of subsections (1), and (2) (a) and (c) , the nomination in a will of a person as executor, trustee or guardian shall be regarded as a benefit to be received by such person from that will.
[S. 4A inserted by s. 7 of Act 43 of 1992.
5 and 6.
[Ss. 5 and 6 repealed by s. 8 of Act 43 of 1992.
The laws specified in Schedule 3 are hereby repealed to the extent set forth in the fourth column of the Schedule: Provided that the laws so repealed shall continue to apply in respect of any will executed before the first day of January, 1954.
[S. 7 substituted by s. 9 of Act 43 of 1992.
[S. 8 substituted by s. 21 of Act 80 of 1964 and repealed by s. 10 of Act 43 of 1992.
This Act shall be called the Wills Act, 1953, and shall come into operation on the first day of January, 1954.
[Schedule 1 inserted by s. 11 of Act 43 of 1992.
I, (full name), of (full address).
in my capacity as commissioner of oaths certify that I have satisfied myself as to the identity of the testator (full name).
and that the accompanying will is the will of the testator.
[Schedule 2 inserted by s. 11 of Act 43 of 1992.
[Schedule 3 renumbered by s. 11 of Act 43 of 1992.
To amend the Wills Act, 1953.
1 Amends section 2 of the Wills Act 7 of 1953.
[S. 2 repealed by s. 1 of Act 49 of 1996.
This Act shall be called the Wills Amendment Act, 1958.
1 Amends section 2 (1) of the Wills Act 7 of 1953 by substituting the words preceding paragraph (a).
2 Inserts section 3 bis in the Wills Act 7 of 1953.
This Act shall be called the Wills Amendment Act, 1965, and shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the State President by proclamation in the Gazette.