In re Estate of Patten
Montana Supreme Court
587 P.2d 1307 (1978)
Ella executed a valid 1968 will naming her son Robert (defendant) as executor, then executed an invalidly executed 1970 will naming her other son Donald (plaintiff) as executor and altering some property dispositions; after Ella's death, the original 1968 will could not be found, and Donald petitioned to probate a copy of it as a lost will, invoking the doctrine of dependent relative revocation to argue the presumed revocation of the 1968 will should be excused given the 1970 will's invalidity. The district court declined to apply the doctrine and granted summary judgment to Robert, finding the 1968 will revoked; Donald appealed.
Whether the doctrine of dependent relative revocation applies if the testator did not clearly intend that the revocation of the old will be conditioned upon the validity of the new will.