Could a 10 year old make a valid will?

A remarkable story recently made headlines — a 10 year old girl was granted a divorce in Yemen after enduring a marriage filled with physical and sexual abuse.  See Vivienne Walt, A 10-Year-Old Divorcée Takes Paris, Time.com, Feb. 3, 2009.

It now interesting to speculate whether she would have the legal capacity to execute a will if she moved to the United States.

In some states, such as Texas, a person under 18 can have legal capacity if the person “is or has been lawfully married.”  Tex. Prob. Code § 57.  Because she was divorced, she must have been lawfully married under Yemen law.  Thus, it would appear that she could execute a valid will if she were domiciled in a state such as Texas.

Special thanks to Robyn Katz (J.D. Candidate, Texas Tech University School of Law) for bringing his article to my attention.