Comparative succession law. Volume 1, Testamentary formalities / edited by Kenneth G.C. Reid, Marius J. de Waal and Reinhard Zimmermann.

Contributor(s):

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2011.Description: xix, 502 p. ; 24 cmISBN:

9780199696802 (hbk.)
0199696802 (hbk.)

Other title:

Testamentary formalities

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

346.054 REI

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Copy number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Standard Loan	Moylish Library Main Collection	346.054 REI (Browse shelf(Opens below))	1	Available		39002100408823

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Launching a major new research project examining the principles of succession law in comparative perspective, this book discusses the formalities which the law imposes in order for a person to make a testamentary disposal of property. Among the questions considered are the following. How are wills made? What precisely are the rules - as to the signature of the testator, the use of witnesses, the need for a notary public or lawyer, and so on? Is there is a choice of will-type and, if so, which type is used most often and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each? How common is will-making or do most people die intestate? What happens if formalities are not observed? How can requirements of form be explained and justified? How did the law develop historically, what is the state of the law today, and what are the prospects for the future?The focus is on Europe, and on countries which have been influenced by the European experience. Thus in addition to giving a detailed treatment of the law in Austria, Belgium, England and Wales, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain, the book explores legal developments in Australia, New Zealand, the United States of America, and in some of the countries of Latin America with a particular emphasis on Brazil. It also includes chapters on two of the mixed jurisdictions - Scotland and South Africa - and on Islamic Law. The book opens with chapters on Roman law and on the early modern law in Europe, thus setting the historical scene as well as anticipating and complementing the accounts of national history which appear in subsequent chapters; and it concludes with an assessment of the overall development of the law in the countries surveyed, and with some wider reflections on the nature and purpose of testamentary formalities.

Includes index.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

Preface (p. x)
List of Contributors (p. xii)
List of Abbreviations (p. xiii)
1 Testamentary Formalities in Roman Law (p. 1)
I troduction (p. 2)
II chaic and pre-classical law (p. 3)
III assical law (p. 5)
IV st-classical law (p. 18)
V Conclusion (p. 25)
2 Testamentary Formalities in Early Modern Europe (p. 27)
I Introduction (p. 27)
II Wills and codicils (p. 33)
III The forms of will (p. 35)
IV Internal formalities (p. 46)
V Conclusion (p. 49)
3 Testamentary Formalities in France and Belgium (p. 51)
I Introduction (p. 52)
II Historical development (p. 53)
III The modern law (p. 55)
IV Holograph wills (p. 57)
V Public wills (p. 62)
VI Secret wills (p. 64)
VII International wills (p. 65)
VIII Registration (p. 68)
IX Procedure after death (p. 69)
X Conclusion (p. 70)
4 Testamentary Formalities in Spain (p. 71)
I Introduction (p. 72)
II Historical background (p. 73)
III The modern law (p. 77)
IV Open wills (p. 79)
V Closed wills (p. 82)
VI Holograph wills (p. 83)
VII Special wills (p. 85)
VIII Shared features (p. 86)
XI Internal formalities (p. 90)
X A shift from formalism (p. 91)
XI Concluding remarks (p. 92)
XII Appendix: the laws, of the Autonomous Communities (p. 93)
5 Testamentary Formalities in Latin America with particular reference to Brazil (p. 96)
I The Latin American background (p. 97)
II Wills and will-making (p. 98)
III Public wills (p. 101)
IV Sealed wills (p. 104)
V Private wills (p. 105)
VI The fate of the holograph will (p. 108)
VII Extraordinary wills (p. 110)
VIII Further aspects (p. 114)
IX Court practice and the flight from formalism (p. 117)
X Concluding remarks (p. 119)
6 Testamentary Formalities in Italy (p. 120)
I Historical introduction (p. 121)
II Wills and will-substitutes (p. 122)
III Holograph wills (p. 126)
IV Notarial wills (p. 130)
V Special wills (p. 134)
VI International wills (p. 136)
VII Evaluation (p. 137)
VIII Defects of form (p. 138)
IX Conclusion (p. 140)
7 Testamentary Formalities in the Netherlands (p. 142)
I Historical overview (p. 143)
II Types of will (p. 147)
III Evidence (p. 161)
IV Special features of testamentary formalities (p. 164)
V Adherence to formalities (p. 170)
VI Concluding remarks (p. 173)
8 Testamentary Formalities in Germany (p. 175)
I Introduction (p. 176)
II Private wills in nineteenth-century Germany (p. 177)
III Holograph wills: principle and exceptions (p. 180)
IV The battle over holograph wills: travaux préparatoires of the BGB (p. 182)
V The holograph will and the courts (1900-35) (p. 187)
VI Another battle over holograph wills (p. 193)
VII Holograph wills today (p. 197)
VIII Public wills (p. 205)
IX Extraordinary wills (p. 212)
X The German experience: a general assessment (p. 218)
9 Testamentary Formalities in Austria (p. 221)
I Relevant instruments and their practical significance (p. 223)
II Historical development (p. 228)
III Modern doctrine and court practice (p. 237)
IV Current debates and plans for reform (p. 251)
V Summary (p. 253)
10 Testamentary Formalities in Hungary (p. 254)
I Introduction (p. 255)
II Common requirements for wills (p. 257)
III Private wills (p. 258)
IV Public wills (p. 265)
V Oral wills for emergency situations (p. 265)
VI rLegal consequences of formal mistakes (p. 267)
VII Summary: relaxation of testamentary formalities (p. 268)
11 Testamentary Formalities in Poland (p. 270)
I Historical development (p. 270)
II The modern law (p. 272)
III Holograph wills (p. 274)
IV Notarial wills (p. 277)
V Allograph wills (p. 278)
VI Emergency wills (p. 279)
VII Recodification (p. 281)
12 Testamentary Formalities in Islamic Law and their Reception in the Modern Laws of Islamic Countries (p. 282)
I Introduction (p. 282)
II Classical Islamic law (p. 284)
III Modern laws (p. 295)
IV Conclusion (p. 303)
13 Testamentary Formalities in England and Wales (p. 305)
I Introduction (p. 306)
II Formal wills: a history (p. 306)
III The Wills Act 1837 (p. 312)
IV Incorporation by reference (p. 316)
V Wills statistics (p. 317)
VI Administration of estates (p. 318)
VII Preparation and registration of wills (p. 321)
VIII Forgery (p. 318)
IX Nuncupative wills (p. 321)
X Holograph wills (p. 322)
XI Alterations (p. 325)
XII Reform (p. 325)
14 Testamentary Formalities in Australia and New Zealand (p. 322)
I Introduction (p. 330)
II Historical overview (p. 333)
III Wills of indigenous peoples (p. 336)
IV Special wills (p. 337)
V The current law (p. 339)
VI Power to dispense with testamentary formalities (p. 249)
VII Conclusion (p. 349)
15 Testamentary Formalities in the United States of America (p. 357)
I Introduction (p. 358)
II Testamentary formalities (p. 360)
III Incorporation by reference and alterations (p. 376)
IV Conclusion (p. 379)
16 Testamentary Formalities in South Africa (p. 381)
I Introduction (p. 382)
II Historical background (p. 384)
III The scope of the Wills Act (p. 385)
IV The essential formalities (p. 387)
V Procedure after death (p. 395)
VI Condonation (p. 395)
VII Amendment (p. 401)
VIII Concluding remarks (p. 402)
17 Testamentary Formalities in Scotland (p. 404)
I Conveyances and testaments (p. 405)
II Seals, signatures, and witnesses (p. 412)
III The modern law (p. 419)
IV Form and formalism (p. 429)
18 Testamentary Formalities in Historical and Comparative Perspective (p. 432)
I Wills and will-making (p. 433)
II Holograph wills (p. 437)
III Witnessed wills (p. 444)
IV Public wills (p. 448)
V Special wills (p. 451)
VI Shared features (p. 455)
VII The flight from formalities (p. 462)
VIII Some conclusions (p. 468)
Index (p. 473)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

A qualified solicitor, Kenneth Reid has taught at the University of Edinburgh since 1980. He was appointed to the Chair of Property Law in 1994 and to the Chair of Scots Law in 2008. From 1995 to 2005 he served as a Scottish Law Commissioner, where he was responsible for a major programme of reform of land law, which was implemented by legislation.Marius de Waal is Professor of Private Law at the University of Stellenbosch. His main fields of interest are the law of succession and the law of trusts, on which he has written a number of textbooks, including co-authoring the the fifth edition of Honoré's South African Law of Trusts (Juta 2002, with Edwin Cameron, Basil Wunsh and Peter Solomon).Reinhard Zimmermann is a Director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg and is Chairman of the Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities Division of the Max Planck Society. He is the author of numerous books on comparative law and legal history, including The Law of Obligations (OUP, 1996) and The New German Law of Obligations (OUP, 2005).