Changing or Revoking a Will
R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-10 — a new will, a signed writing, or destroying it on purpose, and marriage and divorce change it too
- Another will or codicil, signed and witnessed like a will.
- A writing declaring the intent to revoke, signed and witnessed like a will.
- Burning, tearing or otherwise destroying it, by the person who made it or someone at that person's direction and in that person's presence, intending to revoke it.
Marriage revokes it. A marriage revokes a will made before it, unless the will shows it was made in contemplation of the marriage.
A final divorce judgment revokes every provision for the former spouse in a will made before the divorce, and the rest of the will takes effect as though the former spouse had died first.
A particular will is a question for a licensed Rhode Island attorney.
Sources for this section (3)
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-10 — Methods of revoking will
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-9 — Revocation of will by marriage
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-5-9.1 — Revocation of provision in will for divorced spouse
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Rhode Island attorney.