In short
Article 1708 opens harshly: the will is null when it does not correspond to the classes provided in this Code, or when its execution fails to meet its respective requirements and formalities. But it continues with two rescues that change entirely how a will is fought, and they are worth reading slowly because they separate two things families confuse. The first: the absence of a statement in the will that a requirement or formality was met does not affect its validity when it can be shown that it was in fact met. That is, the Code distinguishes not doing the formality — that voids — from not saying on the paper that it was done — that does not void, if the fact can be proved. The second rescue: the absence of the hour of execution does not affect validity either, if the testator has not executed another on the same date. Note the condition is not really about the hour but about competition between two wills of the same day: the hour matters only when there is something to order. Article 1709 opens the other route, which is not nullity but voidability: the will or the testamentary disposition is voidable when its execution involves some defect of the will, or when the testator, at the moment of execution, lacks capacity. Two details matter: the article reaches a single disposition too, not only the whole will; and capacity is measured at the moment of execution, neither before nor after. Which defects of the will count this article does not list, and none is listed here. And Article 1710 sets a surprising procedural duty: the party promoting the action of testamentary nullity must notify it to the authorising notary, so that the notary, at their discretion, may intervene in the manner they consider convenient. A duty for whoever sues, a faculty — not a duty — for the notary.
What is it?
They are Articles 1708, 1709 and 1710 of the Civil Code of 2020: when a will is null, which defects do not void it, when it is voidable, and who must be notified of the action.
Who can do it?
Anyone wanting to challenge a will, and any heir or legatee defending it.
Requirements
- A will is null when it does not match the classes the Code provides or its execution fails its requirements and formalities.Verified against the official source
- The absence of a statement that a requirement was met does not affect validity, when it can be shown it was in fact met.Verified against the official source
- Nor does the absence of the hour, if the testator executed no other will on the same date.Verified against the official source
- The will or the disposition is voidable where a defect of the will intervenes, or the testator lacks capacity at execution.Verified against the official source
- The party promoting the nullity action must notify it to the authorising notary.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: Check it is one of the provided classes
Article 1708: the will is null when it does not match the classes the Code provides.
Step 2: And that its formalities were met
The same paragraph: also null is one whose execution fails its respective requirements and formalities.
Step 3: Separate the fact from its record
The absence of a statement that it was met does not affect validity when it can be shown it was in fact met.
Step 4: The hour almost never voids
Its absence does not affect validity if the testator executed no other will on the same date.
Step 5: Because the hour is for ordering
The article’s condition is not about the hour itself, but about there being two wills of the same day to order.
Step 6: The other route is voidability
Article 1709: for a defect of the will, or lack of capacity at the moment of execution.
Step 7: And it reaches a single clause
The article speaks of the will or the testamentary disposition. The whole need not fall.
Step 8: Notify the notary
Article 1710: whoever brings the nullity action must notify the authorising notary, who intervenes at their discretion.
Where to do it
These articles describe no procedure before any agency. The Code does not say here who may bring the nullity or voidability action, before which forum, with what pleading, at what fee or within what deadline. Nor does it set a term for notifying the notary or a consequence for failing to, nor say what their intervention may consist of. And it does not list here the defects of the will, which live in the general regime of the juridical act and were not read for this batch. None of those gaps is filled here.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
Before challenging a will over a formality, decide which of two things failed, because the Code treats them differently. If the formality was not met, Article 1708 voids the will. If it was met but the document does not record it, that same article saves it, provided it can be shown it was in fact met. Many fights begin by looking at the paper when the question is the act. Something similar happens with the hour: its absence voids nothing, unless the testator executed another will the same day, which is when the hour is good for anything. If what you suspect is pressure, deceit, or that the testator was in no condition to understand what they signed, that is not the nullity route but Article 1709’s voidability, and it has two practical advantages: it reaches a single disposition without having to knock down the whole will, and it measures capacity at the exact moment of execution, not by how the testator was weeks before or after. Which defects of the will count this article does not list, and this guide does not invent them. And if you are going to sue for nullity, Article 1710 imposes a step people forget: notifying the action to the authorising notary. They decide whether and how to intervene; the article does not oblige them to, does not set you a deadline to notify, and does not say what happens if you do not. MiPRFácil does not represent anyone in court and gives no legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Challenging because the will does not say a requirement was met: Article 1708 saves it if the fact is proved.
- Confusing not doing the formality with not recording it: the article separates the two.
- Treating a will with no hour as void: it only matters if another was executed the same day.
- Seeking nullity when what there was was pressure or deceit: that is voidability, Article 1709.
- Believing the whole will must fall: Article 1709 reaches a single disposition.
- Measuring the testator’s capacity by how they were months earlier: the article measures it at the moment of execution.
- Looking in Article 1709 for the list of defects of the will: it does not enumerate them.
- Suing for nullity without notifying the authorising notary: Article 1710 requires it of whoever brings the action.
Frequently asked questions
Is a will with no hour void?
Article 1708 says the absence of the hour does not affect validity, if the testator executed no other on the same date.
The will does not record a formality. Does it fall?
No, if it can be shown it was in fact met. Article 1708 says so.
May a single clause of the will be voided?
Article 1709 speaks of the will or the testamentary disposition, so it reaches a single disposition too.
Must the notary be notified if I challenge the will?
Article 1710 obliges the party bringing the nullity action to notify the authorising notary, who intervenes at their discretion.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
September 12, 2026
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