North Carolina § 28A-2B-4 - (Effective until October 1, 2021) Declaration by court; bar to caveat.

§ 28A-2B-4. (Effective until October 1, 2021) Declaration by court; bar to caveat.

If the court enters a judgment declaring a will or codicil to be valid, such judgment shall be binding upon all parties to the proceeding, including any persons represented in the proceeding pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 28A-2-7, and no party bound by the judgment shall have any further right to, and shall be barred from filing, a caveat to the will or codicil once that will or codicil is entered into probate following the petitioner's death. If a party shows, by clear and convincing evidence, that before and during the hearing, the petitioner was subject to financial or physical duress or coercion which was so significant that the petitioner would not have reasonably disclosed it at the hearing, the party may make a motion to the superior court that the party be permitted to file a caveat, notwithstanding the entry of the judgment. If the court declares a will or codicil to be valid, upon the motion of the petitioner or the court, the court may order that the will or codicil cannot be revoked and that no subsequent will or codicil will be valid unless the revocation or the subsequent will or codicil is declared valid in a proceeding under this Article. If the court enters such an order, any subsequent revocation of the will or codicil not declared valid in a proceeding under this Article shall be void and any subsequent will or codicil not declared valid in a proceeding under this Article shall be void and shall not be admitted to probate. If a will or codicil judicially declared valid is revoked or modified by a subsequent will or codicil, nothing in this section shall bar an interested person from contesting the validity of that subsequent will or codicil, unless that subsequent will or codicil is also declared valid in a proceeding under this Article in which the interested person was a party. If a will or codicil judicially declared valid is revoked by a method other than the execution of a subsequent will or codicil, nothing in this section shall bar an interested person from contesting the validity of that revocation, unless that revocation is also declared valid in a proceeding under this Article in which the interested person was a party. If the court enters a judgment declaring a will or codicil to be valid, such judgment shall be binding upon all parties to the proceeding, including any persons represented in the proceeding pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 28A-2-7, and no party bound by the judgment shall have any further right to, and shall be barred from filing, a caveat to the will or codicil once that will or codicil is entered into probate following the petitioner's death. If the court declares a will or codicil to be valid, upon the motion of the petitioner or the court, the court may order that the will or codicil cannot be revoked and that no subsequent will or codicil will be valid unless the revocation or the subsequent will or codicil is declared valid in a proceeding under this Article. If the court enters such an order, any subsequent revocation of the will or codicil not declared valid in a proceeding under this Article shall be void and any subsequent will or codicil not declared valid in a proceeding under this Article shall be void and shall not be admitted to probate. If a will or codicil judicially declared valid is revoked or modified by a subsequent will or codicil, nothing in this section shall bar an interested person from contesting the validity of that subsequent will or codicil, unless that subsequent will or codicil is also declared valid in a proceeding under this Article in which the interested person was a party. If a will or codicil judicially declared valid is revoked by a method other than the execution of a subsequent will or codicil, nothing in this section shall bar an interested person from contesting the validity of that revocation, unless that revocation is also declared valid in a proceeding under this Article in which the interested person was a party. Nothing in this Article shall preclude a party from seeking relief from a judgment pursuant to Rule 60 of the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure, including, without limitation, for fraud upon the court. History (2015-205, s. 2.) Legal Periodicals. - For note, "Better to Play Dead? Examining North Carolina's Living Probate Law and Its Potential Effect on Testamentary Disposition," see 39 Campbell L. Rev. 187 (2017). § 28A-2B-4. Declaration by court; bar to caveat. History (2015-205, s. 2; 2021-53, s. 1.4A.) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2021-53, s. 1.5, made the deletion of the former second sentence of subsection (a) and the addition of subsection (d) by Session Laws 2021-53, s. 1.4A, effective October 1, 2021, and applicable to proceedings initiated on or after that date. Session Laws 2021-53, s. 5.1, contains a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2021-53, s. 1.3, deleted the former sentence of subsection (a), which read "If a party shows, by clear and convincing evidence, that before and during the hearing, the petitioner was subject to financial or physical duress or coercion which was so significant that the petitioner would not have reasonably disclosed it at the hearing, the party may make a motion to the superior court that the party be permitted to file a caveat, notwithstanding the entry of the judgment."; and added subsection (d). For effective date and applicability, see editor's note. Legal Periodicals. - For note, "Better to Play Dead? Examining North Carolina's Living Probate Law and Its Potential Effect on Testamentary Disposition," see 39 Campbell L. Rev. 187 (2017).