Slack v. Truitt

This is an appeal concerning the probate of a purported will. The question we must decide is whether a will signed by the testator outside the presence of witnesses should have been admitted to probate despite the fact that one of the witnesses did not know it was a will and cannot recall seeing the testator’s signature on the instrument. The Orphans’ Court and the Circuit Court for Cecil County denied the admission of the will to probate. Both courts denied probate because the testator, Dale Slack, failed to acknowledge to the witnesses that the will was his own instrument. The Court of…