Kedzier v Postle

The case of Kedzier v Postle involved a dispute over the validity of a codicil to a will. The deceased, who was believed to have understood that a codicil required witnessing, signed a codicil but it was not witnessed. The matter was brought before the court to determine whether the codicil should be admitted to probate under section 18A of the Wills Probate & Administration Act. The primary issue before the court was whether the lack of witnesses to the codicil should preclude its admission to probate, considering the testator's apparent belief that witnessing was a necessary part of the codicil's execution.

The court examined the relevant statutory provisions and the circumstances surrounding the execution of the codicil. It was established that the testator had a genuine belief that the codicil required witnessing, a belief that was not corrected or challenged by any party present during the codicil's execution. The court held that because the testator held a mistaken belief about the necessity of witnessing, and no party corrected this belief, the codicil was not validly executed according to the requirements of the Act. The court emphasised that the testator's mistaken belief about the legal requirements for executing a codicil was critical in determining the outcome. As a result, the codicil was not admitted to probate.

The court's decision was definitive, and it found in favour of the respondent, ruling that the codicil was not validly executed and therefore should not be admitted to probate. The court's reasoning was grounded in the testator's mistaken belief about the legal formalities required for a codicil, and the absence of any correction of this belief at the time of execution. The final orders of the court were that the codicil in question was not admitted to probate and the estate was to be administered in accordance with the original will.