Surrogate Nora Anderson
The court had to determine a motion for partial summary judgment by proponent Bock seeking dismissal of certain objections filed to the will of Huguette Clark, the extremely wealthy daughter of a former U.S. senator and 19th century copper baron. The respondents argued that the will cannot be admitted to probate based on the objections of lack of due execution and lack of capacity. The court denied the proponent's motion for summary judgment on the issue of testamentary capacity and due execution, finding conflicting evidence as to whether anyone narrated or discussed the provisions in the will with the decedent, or whether she knew that the document before her was a will. The court added that there also exist questions as to the decedent's or anyone else's knowledge of the contents of the will. The court, therefore, determined that if petitioner cannot offer undisputed facts indicating a meeting of the minds between the witnesses and decedent and if the parties disagree on whether the decedent exhibited the recognized indicia of testator's capacity, then clearly and unequivocally there exist material issues of fact that preclude the granting of summary judgment.
