Reviewed by Kole Pederson, attorney licensed in Nebraska and Minnesota. Published November 3, 2026.
A Nebraska handwritten will can work without witnesses only if it meets the state’s special requirements. As of November 1, 2026, those include the maker’s handwritten signature, material terms and signing date. The date rule has limited exceptions. A paper written by someone else needs a separate review of ordinary execution or another applicable exception.
Which handwriting matters in a Nebraska handwritten will?
The handwriting of the person making the will matters for that person’s holographic will.
That word describes a special kind of handwritten will. Nebraska lets such a will operate without witnesses when it meets the statute’s requirements.
The signature alone is not the whole test. The material provisions must also be in the maker’s handwriting. These are the words that express gifts and an intent for the paper to act as a will.
The statute also addresses an indication of the signing date. Limited exceptions can resolve a missing date. They cover a paper that is the only such instrument, or one that does not conflict with a similar one. They also cover a date that can be found from the contents, circumstances or other evidence.
That is a reason to gather earlier papers. It is not a reason to leave a date out when making a new will.
What did Estate of Todd decide?
On October 30, 2026, Nebraska’s Supreme Court affirmed the rejection of a document offered as the decedent’s holographic will. His partner had written its material terms.
An earlier will left his property to his sons. After his death, his partner offered a later, two-page handwritten paper that she said left the estate to her.
She testified that he signed and dated the paper and told her what to write. She admitted that the rest was in her handwriting.
The later paper also lacked the ordinary two-witness execution. The court therefore addressed whether it qualified under the handwritten-will exception.
The partner argued that it was their joint will and that her handwriting should count as a maker’s handwriting. The court explained that each person’s will must be tested separately, even when two wills share one document.
Only the decedent’s will was being offered in his estate. His partner’s handwriting could not supply the material provisions for his holographic will.
The court did not decide the lower court’s other concern. That concern was whether the paper showed an intent to act as a will. The handwriting issue was enough.
The opinion did not concern a farm. Farm families may face the same question when one person writes a shared estate plan.
Quick facts
- Holographic path: maker’s own signature and material provisions, with the statute’s date requirement and exceptions.
- Ordinary execution: writing, maker’s signature or properly directed signature, and at least two qualifying witnesses, subject to statutory exceptions.
- Todd’s result: another maker’s handwriting did not cure the defect in the decedent’s purported holographic will.
- Review point: count roles and acts, not just names on the page.
Can a handwritten paper qualify through ordinary execution?
A handwritten paper can be tested under ordinary execution requirements. Handwriting on the page does not force every will into the holographic exception.
The ordinary Nebraska rule requires a writing. It requires the maker’s signature. Another person may sign for the maker, in the maker’s presence and at the maker’s direction.
At least two individuals must sign after witnessing the maker’s signing or acknowledgment of the signature or will. Other statutory exceptions also exist.
That means the review asks what happened when people signed. A person signing as another maker is not automatically a qualifying witness merely because a second signature appears.
A notary’s stamp, by itself, does not show that the required witness acts occurred. Gather the facts behind the signatures.
A new will needs the right form and the right signing steps. Have the plan reviewed before anyone signs.
What should a farm family bring to a will review?
Bring the whole document, earlier versions and a clear account of the signing.
Start with every page. Include attachments, handwritten additions and any separate paper that was kept with the will. Preserve the original as it is.
Then separate the writing story from the signing story. Identify who wrote the gift terms. Record who signed and their role. Note whether each witness saw the maker sign or heard the maker acknowledge it.
Write down the date and place if known. Do not fill gaps by guessing or asking someone to change the old page.
A current property list helps explain the plan you want now. List land, farm business interests and other major property without posting private account details in public.
Say a couple kept one handwritten sheet in a home file. One spouse wrote the gifts and both signed. This is a made-up example, not a ruling about that couple.
Their review would start with the original sheet and the actual signing facts. It would then address whether to prepare replacement documents and how those documents should treat earlier papers.
An estate plan review can address the will and powers of attorney together. The handwriting issue is one part of matching signed documents to the family’s current wishes.
Should you mark up the old will to fix the problem?
Keep the signed original intact while obtaining a review.
Crossing out a gift or writing a new name may create another question about what paper controls. Counsel should review a replacement and its execution, including the treatment of earlier documents.
If the person has already died, preserve the papers and seek timely probate counsel before altering anything. A dispute over a will calls for counsel who handles contested probate.
A homemade will is easiest to fix while its maker can still review and sign a new one.
Questions about an existing handwritten will
Does a missing date always end the review?
No. Nebraska’s holographic-will statute provides limited date exceptions. Other papers and evidence may matter, so keep them together for review.
Does a joint document make both people’s handwriting count for each will?
No. Todd tested the decedent’s will separately. Another maker’s handwriting did not become his handwriting for the material provisions.
Is this the Minnesota rule too?
A will signed in another state needs its own review. Do not assume Nebraska’s handwritten-will exception applies there.
If you have a shared handwritten will, call (816) MW-AGLAW about a review before changing the paper.
Kole
Kole Pederson is an attorney licensed in Nebraska and Minnesota and the founder of Midwest Ag Law.
Kole Pederson, attorney licensed in Nebraska and Minnesota, founder of Midwest Ag Law in Henderson, Nebraska.
References
In re Estate of Todd, 322 Neb. 719, 722 to 727, 729 to 730 (2026).
