If a witness to a Will dies, does the Will become invalid?
No. Under Alberta law, in order to probate a Will, witnesses to the Will have to sign a separate statement swearing to their role as a witness. If you use a lawyer to create your Will, the lawyer usually has the witnesses sign this document immediately after the Will is signed and witnessed. If, however, at probate, there is no such statement and the witness has died, there are steps that your probate lawyer can take to address this issue.
May 2008
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