Private Law Theory

ABSTRACT
A will typically is a single document that is prepared by a testator at one time. Not all wills are typical, though. A will can comprise multiple documents that are prepared at different times during the testator’s life. This scenario occurs when a testator executes an initial will and then later executes one or more codicils that amend rather than replace the initial will. In this scenario, multiple documents must be collected at the testator’s death and construed together to obtain a full understanding of the testator’s intended estate plan. This Article refers to these atypical wills, which express the testator’s intent across multiple documents, as fragmented wills …

Glover, Mark, Fragmented Wills (April 19, 2024), 67 Arizona Law Review (forthcoming 2025).