Weerasinghe v. Nagahawatte and Others – sllr 1984 volume 1 page 411

In the case between the widow of the late Arthur Andrew Weerasinghe (appellant) and respondents including Stanley Weerasinghe, Gemunu Weerasinghe, and others, the court examined whether a Last Will, its original being unavailable save for a protocol copy, could be used to establish its contents and validity for probate. The issue centered on the presumption of revocation where the Will is missing at death, and on the admissibility of secondary evidence to establish the Will’s existence and terms. It was determined that the appellant did not establish the Will’s destruction, thereby rejecting the presumption of intentional revocation, and secondary evidence was deemed sufficient for probate. This approach reaffirmed the principle that the absence of an original Will does not preclude proof