Case Law Update: Re The Estate of Honor Duncan McCulloch [Deceased] [2025] IEHC 400

Case examined whether a codicil referring to an earlier will by its date demonstrates an intention to revive that will under s. 87 of the Succession Act 1965, when a later will exists, with the court finding insufficient evidence of intent to revive the earlier will.

Deceased made Will in 2015 and 2020, both of which contained revocation clauses. In 2022, the deceased became concerned that she had excluded persons from her Will whom she felt had been very good to her. Consequently, she executed a Codicil which was an entirely separate document and not attached to either the 2015 Will or the 2020 Will. Clause 1 of the Codicil described itself as “a first Codicil to my Will dated 29 September, 2015 (‘my Will’)”. The problem therefore arose as to what the effect of the Codicil was and whether it revived the 2015 Will.

Court considered the application of section 87, Succession Act, 1965 which provides:

“No will or any part thereof, which is in any manner revoked, shall be revived otherwise than by the re-execution thereof or by a codicil duly executed and showing an intention to revive it; and when any will or codicil which is partly revoked, and afterwards wholly revoked, is revived, such revival shall not extend to so much thereof as was revoked before the revocation of the whole thereof, unless an intention to the contrary is shown.”

Ultimately, the Court found the mere reference to the date of the 2015 Will and the use of the phrase “I confirm” were insufficient to show an intention to revive the 2015 Will. Interestingly, Stack J. also stated that whilst there was no latent ambiguity in the Codicil to justify the admission of the extrinsic evidence which is available in the form of the deceased's instructions to “even things out” so far as a residuary clause was concerned, she was still entitled to look at surrounding circumstances in accordance with the “armchair principle”. Accordingly, the Court formed the view there was nothing before it that demonstrated an intention to revive the 2015 Will.