Estate of Gary L Heffron

Case Number

25PR00586

Case Type

Hearing Date / Time

Tue, 01/06/2026 - 09:00

Nature of Proceedings

Petition for Probate and Letters Testamentary

Tentative Ruling

Probate Notes:

Appearances required.

The following is noted for the court, and must be addressed at the hearing:

Hybrid will.  A “hybrid” will (i.e. fill-in-the-blank will or typewritten will with handwritten interlineations) is not admissible to probate unless the handwritten portions of the will dispose of the estate on their own, without the need for reference to the typewritten portion of the will, other than mere organization issues.  (In re Goldsworthy's Estate (1942) 54 Cal.App.2d 666, 672 [as to a fill-in-the-blank will].  See also Estate of Sola (1990) 225 Cal.App.3d 241 and Estate of Phifer (1984) 152 Cal.App.3d 813 [as to handwritten interlineations on a formerly executed typewritten will].)  California law only allows fill-in-the-blank wills in two instances: 1) The statutory form is used (Prob. Code, §§6220 et seq.); or 2) the handwritten portion of the will meets the standard of a holographic will without the need for reference to the printed portions (Estate of Black (1982) 30 Cal.3d 880, 888]). 

For a hybrid will to qualify as a valid holographic will, the handwritten portions must independently express the testator's dispositive intent. If the handwritten entries are merely names, dates, or property descriptions that have no testamentary meaning without the printed language, courts must find the printed matter was incorporated, and deny admission of the will to probate. (Estate of Phifer (1984) 152 Cal.App.3d 813, 817 [“so long as the printed words were “not relevant to [the holograph's] substance or essential to its validity as a will or codicil.”]; Estate of Sola (1990) 225 Cal.App.3d 241, 247 [“Where the handwriting in itself lacks testamentary intent and substance and has meaning only in relationship to the typewritten words it relates to, there is no complete testamentary document that can be deemed a holographic will.”].)  However, if the handwritten portions contain complete dispositive provisions that can stand on their own, with printed matter serving only as procedural or organizational framework, the will may be admissible. (Estate of Black (1982) 30 Cal.3d 880, 885.)

In this case, the handwritten portions of the fill-in-the-blank will are almost completely reliant upon the typewritten portions of the will.  Stated another way: the handwritten portions of the will cannot be said to dispose of the decedent’s estate clearly without reference to the typewritten portions.  Thus, the will should not be admitted to probate, and the Court should find the decedent died intestate.

Appearances:

The court is open to the public for court business. The court is also conducting hearings via Zoom videoconference.

Meeting ID: 160 543 3416

Passcode: 5053334