Uprzywilejowane rozporządzenia ostatniej woli sporządzane podczas zarazy w prawie i orzecznictwie sądów byłego zaboru austriackiego w okresie międzywojennym

Diseases and the risk of death associated with them i.e. from plagues (epidemics), especially dangerous as virulence increased, led the legislature to provide in the provisions of the inheritance law for the testator to draw up a will which for its validity had less formal requirements than an ordinary will, but would be in force in the event of the sudden death of the testator. Such a possibility was included by the Austrian legislature in the possibility for such a person to take advantage of the privileged decree of last will, the rules of which are regulated in §§ 597–599 ABGB. According to these rules, in places where there was a plague or similar plagues, the testator could make a will before two people who were at least fourteen years old. At the same time, they did not have to be present due to the risk of contracting a disease. The laconic nature of the conditions enabling the use of a privileged will as defined in ABGB meant that in practice these issues had to be finally resolved by the judicature of the courts.