AK · jury_instructions
Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instruction 26.07
Testamentary Capacity
The Contestant claims that the will is invalid because the Maker was not of sound mind when the will was signed. For the Contestant to win on this claim, you must decide that at least one of the following things is more likely true than not true:
(1) the Maker lacked the mental capacity to understand the nature and extent of [his] [her] property;
(2) the Maker lacked the mental capacity to understand that [he] [she] was signing a will that would dispose of [his] [her] property when [he] [she] died;
(3) the Maker lacked the mental capacity to identify the persons or entities to whom someone in the Maker's position would naturally consider leaving property.
[Evidence that the Maker [was] [old] [sick] [weak] [approaching death] [used] [was addicted to] [drugs or alcohol] [had a guardian] does not establish that the Maker lacked a sound mind. However, you may consider this evidence in determining whether the Maker lacked a sound mind.
If you decide that the Maker lacked the mental capacity to understand any one of the three things I have described, then you must return a verdict for the Contestant. Otherwise, you must find that the Maker was of sound mind when [he] [she] made the will and [return a verdict for the Proponent] [decide some additional things that I will explain to you.]
History
Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instructions 26.07, dated Revised 1995. Prepared by the Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instructions Committee; published by the Alaska Court System. The Alaska Court System states that these instructions "have not been approved or promulgated by any court or the Alaska Bar Association."
Provenance
- Source
- courts.alaska.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-24
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
de2c747a62d6c9addebcf1d96ecd888196bb0c08e865b314b44e7586a877dede
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