## Facts

- Lawrence Norton died in 1987; an eight-page packet was found in his safe-deposit box.
- Pages 1–6 were titled “Last Will and Testament of Lawrence Norton,” contained dispositive provisions, and ended mid-sentence in a property description.
- Pages 1–6 were signed by Norton on each page but had no date, no attestation clause, and no witness signatures.
- Pages 7–8 were titled “Codicil to Last Will and Testament of Lawrence Norton,” were executed in 1984 with two witnesses and a self-proving notary certificate, and were undisputedly valid as a codicil.
- The codicil stated that the “typewritten page and the following Certificate of Self-Proven Codicil to my Will … together constitutes this Codicil.”
- A cover sheet labeled the packet as Norton’s “Will … and Codicil,” and a granddaughter testified she stapled the codicil to the earlier pages at Norton’s direction because he believed they needed to be attached.
- The propounder sought probate of the entire eight pages as a single will via incorporation by reference; the heirs/administratrices contended only the codicil was valid and the six pages had no testamentary effect.

## Issues

1. Whether the codicil incorporated by reference the unattested six-page writing so that the combined documents constituted a valid will.
2. Whether evidence of physical attachment and extrinsic testimony can substitute for a clear written reference within the codicil identifying the document to be incorporated.

## Decision

- The Supreme Court of North Carolina affirmed judgment notwithstanding the verdict for the respondents.
- The codicil was validly executed and could be probated as a testamentary instrument.
- The six-page writing was not incorporated by reference into the codicil because the codicil did not clearly identify and manifest intent to incorporate that writing.
- Physical stapling, a cover-sheet label, and testimony about the decedent’s intent were insufficient to satisfy incorporation-by-reference requirements.

## Legal Principles

- Incorporation by reference requires (1) the referenced document’s existence at the time the will or codicil is executed and (2) a clear written reference in the executing instrument showing intent to incorporate and providing reliable identification of the specific document.
- A generic reference to a “will” or “last will and testament,” without a clear identifying reference to the particular extrinsic writing, does not incorporate an unattested document.
- Extrinsic evidence and physical arrangement may support existence but cannot supply the missing clear written reference needed to incorporate an otherwise noncompliant testamentary writing.

## Conclusion

The court enforced strict incorporation-by-reference requirements, holding that a properly executed codicil did not bring an unattested multi-page writing into a valid will when the codicil lacked a clear written reference identifying that writing as intended to be incorporated.


In re Estate of Norton, 330 N.C. 378, 410 S.E.2d 484 (N.C. 1991)