Will Revocation and Revival Requirements in Missouri

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Governing law and scope

Missouri's traditional rules are §§ 474.400 through 474.420. The electronic- wills act, §§ 474.540 through 474.564, has applied to wills of decedents dying on or after August 28, 2025. Both the general probate-code definition and the electronic act treat a codicil as a will and recognize testamentary instruments that revoke or revive another will.

Later will, codicil, or writing

For a traditional written will, § 474.400 authorizes revocation by a subsequent written will. Its statutory sentence does not separately say whether the later will must act expressly or may act only by inconsistency.

Section 474.552 is more explicit for electronic wills. A subsequent will may revoke all or part expressly or by inconsistency. A separate written instrument also works when the testator signs it and declares the revocation; the section does not add a witness requirement to that particular electronic-will route.

Physical or electronic revoking act

Section 474.400 lists burning, canceling, tearing, or obliterating a traditional written will or part. The statutory sentence does not state a separate intent or evidence standard for those acts.

For an electronic will, § 474.552 uses a broader “physical act” formulation. The act works only when a preponderance of the evidence establishes that the testator intended to revoke all or part and performed the act personally or directed another person who acted in the testator's physical presence.

Act by another person

Another person may perform the traditional act only in the testator's presence and with the testator's consent and direction. The electronic rule similarly requires the testator's direction and physical presence, but it also assigns the preponderance proof standard to both intent and conduct.

Partial revocation

Both regimes permit partial revocation. Section 474.400 begins with a written will “nor any part thereof” and applies its later-will and physical-act routes to that scope. Section 474.552 expressly lets an electronic will revoke all or part of a previous will and lets all or part of the electronic will be revoked by its listed routes.

Intent, proof, and presumptions

The traditional physical-act section states no express intent or quantified evidence standard. The electronic section requires preponderance proof that the testator acted with revocatory intent or directed the act in physical presence. It also creates a missing-will presumption: when evidence shows the testator signed an electronic will but neither it nor a certified paper copy can be found after death, the electronic will is presumed revoked.

Divorce, annulment, and other family events

Section 474.420 revokes all will provisions in favor of a former spouse at divorce and gives that revocation the same effect as if the spouse died at that time. It then says no other change in the testator's circumstances or condition revokes a written will or part. The section states no automatic remarriage- revival rule.

Revival after a later will or revoking act

When a second will is revoked by an act under § 474.400, the first will remains revoked unless the circumstances of the revocation or the testator's contemporary or later declarations show an intent that the first will take effect. When a third will revokes the second, restoration reaches only as far as the third will's terms show that intent.

Reexecution, republication, and codicil effect

Missouri's definition of will includes a codicil and a testamentary instrument that merely revokes or revives another will. Section 474.410 supplies the substantive revival-intent tests. The cited statutes do not create a restoration rule based only on retaining or recovering the old original.

What trips people up

Missouri now has different proof language for traditional and electronic wills. The old paper section lists the acts without a quantified proof standard. The electronic section requires preponderance evidence of intent and the physical act, and it creates an express presumption when both the electronic will and its certified paper copy are missing after death.

The electronic revocation routes are not all equally formal. A subsequent will may act expressly or by inconsistency, while a standalone written instrument needs the testator's signature and a declaration of revocation. The physical- act route adds intent, proof, and physical-presence requirements.

Common questions

Can a Missouri electronic will revoke only part of an older will?

Yes. Section 474.552(1) expressly says an electronic will may revoke all or part of a previous will.

Does divorce revoke the whole will?

No. Section 474.420 revokes the provisions in favor of the divorced spouse and treats that spouse as having died at divorce for the revocation's effect.

Does destroying the newer will automatically restore the older one?

No. Section 474.410 keeps the first will revoked unless revival intent is shown by the circumstances or declarations, or—when a third will is involved—by the third will's terms.

Statutes and sources

• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 472.010(30) — defines will to include codicils and instruments that revoke or revive another will. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.400 — traditional later-will and physical-act revocation, directed acts, and partial scope. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.410 — revival intent after revocation of a second will by act or by a third will. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.420 — former-spouse provisions and the no-other- circumstance-change rule. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.542 — electronic-act definitions, including electronic will, signing, codicils, and revoking instruments. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.552 — electronic-will revocation routes, preponderance proof, directed acts, partial revocation, and the missing-will presumption. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).
• Mo. Rev. Stat. § 474.564 — applicability to decedents dying on or after August 28, 2025. Official text (accessed 2026-08-01).