The medical competency to make a valid will is called testamentary capacity.
• Lawyers generally call the doctor for evaluation at the time of making the will to avoid later disputes about testamentary capacity on medical ground. The court may invalidate a will if it is found that the person at the time of making his will was not of a sound mind and did not have the mental capacity to understand the act and its consequences
• The doctor certifying the medical competence must keep in mind two necessary parts of medical evaluation means the testator must understand what he or she is doing in making a will, and its consequences, the nature and extent of his or her property; and his or her relation to living descendants, spouse, and parents, and others whose interests are affected by the will.
• The second part that is much more important for the doctor is that the person must not suffer from any mental disorder/illness that involves delusions, illusion or hallucinations.
• To make unfit on the medical ground of insane delusions, the delusions must be extreme. The delusions must also affect the bequest. If the individual has another independent and sane reason for the bequest, then the delusions do not vitiate his or her testamentary capacity.
• Any history or presence of loss of memory/head injury or Alzheimer’s disease must be ruled out by the doctor in writing in the certificate
• The doctrine of undue influence must be kept in mind by the doctor since the courts distinguish “reasonable persuasion” from “undue influence.” It is often the case that lessened capacity as in the case of someone who is mentally frail is taken to render undue influence more likely. To the extent that elders are more susceptible to overreaching, this doctrine may come into effect. A reference from geriatric physician is required in such cases
• If the examining doctor has reason to believe that the person is under influence of some person, who is prevention him from exercising his own discretion in making his will, it is better for the doctor to defer the certification for another examination and make another medical examination in his/her own safe clinic with assured privacy for the person and encourage him to speak out freely since a will is invalid, if it is executed under undue influence.
• The given medical certificate must mention the following: … that the certificate is issued for the purpose of making a will and to the best of my examination, medical knowledge and believe the examined person is fit/unfit to make a valid will. I am a registered medical doctor and my detail is as under with address of contact.
(Contributed by Dr Sudhir Gupta)
• Lawyers generally call the doctor for evaluation at the time of making the will to avoid later disputes about testamentary capacity on medical ground. The court may invalidate a will if it is found that the person at the time of making his will was not of a sound mind and did not have the mental capacity to understand the act and its consequences
• The doctor certifying the medical competence must keep in mind two necessary parts of medical evaluation means the testator must understand what he or she is doing in making a will, and its consequences, the nature and extent of his or her property; and his or her relation to living descendants, spouse, and parents, and others whose interests are affected by the will.
• The second part that is much more important for the doctor is that the person must not suffer from any mental disorder/illness that involves delusions, illusion or hallucinations.
• To make unfit on the medical ground of insane delusions, the delusions must be extreme. The delusions must also affect the bequest. If the individual has another independent and sane reason for the bequest, then the delusions do not vitiate his or her testamentary capacity.
• Any history or presence of loss of memory/head injury or Alzheimer’s disease must be ruled out by the doctor in writing in the certificate
• The doctrine of undue influence must be kept in mind by the doctor since the courts distinguish “reasonable persuasion” from “undue influence.” It is often the case that lessened capacity as in the case of someone who is mentally frail is taken to render undue influence more likely. To the extent that elders are more susceptible to overreaching, this doctrine may come into effect. A reference from geriatric physician is required in such cases
• If the examining doctor has reason to believe that the person is under influence of some person, who is prevention him from exercising his own discretion in making his will, it is better for the doctor to defer the certification for another examination and make another medical examination in his/her own safe clinic with assured privacy for the person and encourage him to speak out freely since a will is invalid, if it is executed under undue influence.
• The given medical certificate must mention the following: … that the certificate is issued for the purpose of making a will and to the best of my examination, medical knowledge and believe the examined person is fit/unfit to make a valid will. I am a registered medical doctor and my detail is as under with address of contact.
(Contributed by Dr Sudhir Gupta)
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