[WSBAPT] Application of the Dead Mans Statute

Tue Nov 15 11:23:22 PST 2022

Recently deceased had remarried his former wife earlier this year. His prior Will and Codicil were prepared/signed while they were previously married and not updated after the divorce.  So as to his wife, the divorce essentially removed her name from the Will and their recent marriage makes her an intermittent wife and she therefore takes as if he died intestate, correct?
I believe that the statute says that the Court can decrease this award depending on if she received monies from decedent through other means.
The H&W had stayed close since the divorce and while she had her own home inherited from her parents, she had a room at decedent's home and stayed there as well these several years after the divorce.

Question: The decedent's issue are making allegations that the decedent was dying and that the current marriage was only so she could receive his SS and she should not get anything else.
So trying to understand the extent of this type of testimony. Can the issue testify as to what they allege was the decedent's intent ?
Thanks
Mike

[cid:46cb7759-a3a3-48d8-ac55-2241d31f3980]
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20221115/87638baa/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Outlook-2mb0pkvh.png
Type: image/png
Size: 57245 bytes
Desc: Outlook-2mb0pkvh.png
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20221115/87638baa/Outlook-2mb0pkvh.png>