Opinion 280
Question Presented
Please advise me as to the propriety of including in a will drawn by an attorney the following statement: "This will is executed in duplicate-originals, one of which duplicate-originals is retained by X, Attorney at Law, Oldtown, Texas."
18 Baylor L. Rev. 352 (1966)
SOLICITATION - WILLS
Use of a statement in a will that the will is executed in duplicate-originals and that one is retained by X, attorney, violates Canon 24.
Canon 24.
It is difficult to conceive of any good reason for a lawyer to include this paragraph in a will he has written. If the typed-original is available to one interested in the estate, it is unnecessary to know where the duplicate-original is. If the typed-original is lost or misplaced, the information in it regarding the location of the duplicate-original is also lost and does not aid in locating the duplicate-original. The most likely reason for a lawyer's using such a paragraph is to solicit the probate of the estate. The use of the statement violates Canon 24. (9-0.)
Bluebook Citation
Tex. Comm. On Professional Ethics, Op. 280 (1964)