Title 15, Estates and Probate

(a) Every adult person of sound mind may dispose of his separate property, real and personal, by will. (b) Every adult person may by will dispose of the whole or any part of his body to a teaching institution, university, college, State or Territorial Director of Public Health or…

Every adult person of sound mind may dispose of his community property by will to the extent provided in Chapter 10 of this Title. SOURCE: California Probate Code, § 21. COMMENT: Section 21 of the Probate Code of Guam (1970) read: “The extent to which community property may be di…

Influence. A will or part of a will procured to be made by duress, menace, fraud or undue influence, may be denied probate; and a revocation procured by the same means may be declared void. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 22.

A conjoint or mutual will is valid, but it may be revoked by any of the testators in like manner as any other will. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 23. COL 2025-08-27

A will, the validity of which is made conditional by its own terms, shall be granted or denied probate, or denied effect after probate, in conformity with the condition. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 24.

The execution of a codicil referring to a previous will has the effect to republish the will as modified by the codicil. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 25.

Pacific Islands. (a) No will made out of Guam is valid as a will in Guam unless: (1) Executed according to the provisions of this Title; or (2) Executed according to the law of the State or United States territory in which it was executed; or (3) Valid under the laws of the State…

A testamentary disposition may be made to the United States, to any instrumentality of the United States, to any of the States or organized territories of the United States, to counties of any of the States or of organized territories of the United States, to municipal corporatio…

A testamentary disposition is made upon the valid making of the will in which such testamentary disposition is included, as provided in Chapter 2 of this Title. Testamentary dispositions, including devises and bequests to a person on attaining majority, are presumed to vest at th…

A devise or legacy given to more than one person vests in them as owners in common, unless the will otherwise provides. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 29. COL 2025-08-27

Exception. No person convicted of the murder or voluntary manslaughter of a decedent shall be entitled to take under any will of the decedent which was executed prior to the infliction of the injury which was the cause of the decedent’s death; but the portion of the decedent’s es…

Every will must be in writing and every will, other than a holographic will, must be executed and attested as follows: (a) It must be subscribed at the end thereof by the testator himself, or it must be subscribed by some person in the testator's presence and by the testator's di…

Witnesses are Valid; When They are Void. COL120106 All beneficial devises, bequests and legacies to a subscribing witness are void unless there are two (2) other and disinterested sub- scribing witnesses to the will, except that if any such interested witness would be entitled to…

A mere charge on the estate of the testator for the payment of debts does not prevent the testator's creditors from being competent witnesses to the testator's will. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 52.

Disregarded; Holographic Changes to Holographic Wills. (a) A holographic will is one that is written, dated and signed by the hand of the testator himself. No formalities are necessary for its making or execution except as set forth in this subsection, and it need not be witnesse…

A will may be written and executed in any language. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 56. ---------- COL120106

The Clerk of the Superior Court of Guam is authorized to receive and deposit in a safe place in his office any will delivered to him for that purpose, and to give a written receipt therefor to the person who presents such will for such deposit. The Clerk of the Superior Court of …

A will deposited in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court of Guam under the provisions of Section 301 of this Title shall be delivered only as follows: (a) During the testator's lifetime, to the testator in person, or to some other person upon the testator's written order…

(a) The Presiding Judge of the Superior Court of Guam, upon the delivery to him of a deposited will under the provisions of Section 303(b) of this Title, shall forthwith publicly open the envelope in which the will COL120106 is contained, examine the will, and file the will in th…

If a testator marries after making a will, and the spouse of that marriage survives the testator, the will is revoked as to such spouse, unless provision has been made for such spouse by marriage contract, or unless such spouse is provided for in the will, or in such way mentione…

Spouse. If a married testator makes a will and is subsequently divorced, and the person whose marriage to the testator was dissolved by such divorce survives the testator, the will is revoked as to such former spouse, unless the will shows a specific intent to the contrary; and n…

Marriage. If a testator marries after making a will and has issue of such marriage, and any of the issue survives the testator, or is born after the death of the testator, the will is revoked as to such issue, unless provision has been made for such issue by some settlement, or u…

Previously Disposed of by Will. If a testator who has made a testamentary disposition of property subsequently executes an instrument which alters his interest in such property, such instrument operates as a revocation of such testamentary disposition if: (a) such instrument expr…

Previously Disposed of by Will. If a testator who has made a testamentary disposition of property subsequently enters into an agreement for the sale or transfer of such property, such agreement does not revoke such disposition; but such property passes by the will, subject to the…

Previously Disposed of by Will. If a testator who has made a testamentary disposition of property subsequently places a charge or encumbrance on such property for the purpose of securing the payment of money or the performance of any covenant or agreement, neither such a charge o…

(a) Except as hereinabove provided in this Chapter, no written will, nor any part thereof, can be revoked or altered otherwise than as set forth in subsections (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this Section: (1) By a subsequent written will or other writing of the testator, executed with the s…

If, after making a will, the testator makes a second will, the destruc- tion or other revocation of such second will does not revive the first will, unless it appears by the terms of such revocation that it was the testator's intention to revive and give effect to the first will,…

A will executed in duplicate is revoked if one of the duplicates is burned, torn, canceled, defaced, obliterated or destroyed under the cir- cumstances mentioned in subsection (a)(2) of Section 413 of this Title. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 76.

The revocation of a will revokes all its codicils. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 79. ---------- COL120106

Succession; When Not. When a testator omits to provide in his will for any of his children, or for the issue of any deceased child, whether born before or after the making of the will or before or after the death of the testator, and such child or issue is unprovided for by any s…

and Grandchildren. The share of the estate which is assigned to a child or issue omitted in a will, as mentioned in Section 501 of this Title, must first be taken from the estate not disposed of by the will, if any; if that is not sufficient, so much as may be necessary must be t…

If a devisee or legatee dies during the lifetime of the testator, the testamentary disposition to him fails, unless an intention appears to COL120106 substitute another in his place; except that when any estate is devised or bequeathed to any kindred of the testator, and the devi…

Paramount. The interpretation of wills, wherever made, is governed, when relating to property within the territory of Guam, by the laws of the territory of Guam, and the rules prescribed in this Chapter are to be observed, unless an intention to the contrary clearly appears; prov…

Testator's Intention to be Given Fullest Effect Possible. Several testamentary instruments executed by the same testator are to be taken and construed together as one instrument. A will is to be construed according to the intention of the testator. Where the testator's intention …

Total Intestacy. The words of a will are to receive an interpretation which will give to every expression some effect, rather than one which will render any of the expressions inoperative; and of two modes of interpreting a will, that is to be preferred which will prevent a total…

Construed as a Whole; Construction of Irreconcilable Parts. COL120106 Where the meaning of any part of a will is ambiguous or doubtful, it may be explained by any reference thereto, or recital thereof, in another part of the will. All the parts of a will are to be construed in re…

Other Words in Will, Inferences, Arguments, and Inaccurate Recitals. A clear and distinct devise or bequest can not be affected by any reasons assigned therefor, or by any other words not equally clear and distinct, or by inference or argument from other parts of the will, or by …

Evidence to Arrive at Testamentary Intent. When there is an imperfect description in a will, or no person or property exactly answers the description in a will, mistakes and omis- sions must be corrected, if such error appears from the context of the will or from extrinsic eviden…

Sense; Construction of Technical Words. The words of a will are to be taken in their ordinary and grammatical sense, unless a clear intention to use them in another sense can be collected, and that other use can be ascertained. Technical words are not necessary to give effect to …

to Devise Fee; Effect of Devise of Realty. The term Aheirs,@ or other words of inheritance, are not requisite to devise a fee, and a devise of real property passes all of the estate of the testator, unless otherwise limited. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 107.

Words of Donation and Words of Limitation. A testamentary disposition to Aheirs,@ Arelations,@ Arepresentatives,@ Alegal representatives,@ Apersonal representatives,@ Afamily,@ Anearest of kin@ or Anext of kin@ of any person, without other words of qualification, and when the ter…

Bequest to Testator's Own Heirs or Next of Kin. The law of the territory of Guam does not include either COL120106 (1) the common law rule of worthier title, that a testator cannot devise an interest to his own heirs; or (2) a presumption or rule of interpretation that a testator…

A devise of land conveys all the estate of the testator therein which he could lawfully devise, unless it clearly appear by the will that the testator intended to convey a less estate. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 120.

When Not. Any estate, right, or interest in lands acquired by the testator after the making of his will, passes thereby and in like manner as if title thereto had been vested in the testator at the time he made the will, unless the contrary manifestly appears by the will to have …

COL120106 Words in a will referring to death or survivorship, simply, relate to the time of the testator's death, unless possession is actually postponed, in which event they must be referred to the time of possession. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 122.

A testamentary disposition to a class includes every person answering to the description at the testator's death; but when the possession is postponed to a future period, it includes also all persons coming within the description before the time to which possession is postponed, …

When a will directs the conversion of real property into money, such property and all its proceeds shall be deemed personal property from the time of the testator's death. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 124.

Property. A devise or bequest of all the testator's real or personal property, in express terms, or in any other terms denoting the testator's intent to dispose of all his real or personal property, passes all the real or personal property which the testator was entitled to dispo…

A devise of the residue of a testator's real property, or a bequest of the residue of a testator's personal property, passes all the real or personal property, as the case may be, which the testator was entitled to devise or bequeath at the time of death, not otherwise effectuall…

Remainder. The death of a devisee or legatee of a limited interest before the testator's death does not defeat the interest of persons in remainder who survive the testator. SOURCE: Probate Code of Guam (1970), § 140.