A deaf-mute person who does not speak official sign language signed a will without having it properly translated by a sign language interpreter in a manner consistent with his understanding.
The Court canceled the will due to defects in its drafting. Israeli law requires a notary who prepares a document for the signature of a person who is mute, deaf or blind to indicate the person's disability in the document, to arrange for the document to be translated into the language of the person ordering it, and to confirm that that person did understand the meaning of the action. Here, the deceased mastered a sign language which was understandable only to his close relatives, the will was prepared by a notary who summoned a sign language interpreter at the time of signing the will, but the interpreter could not to understand the testator nor read and translate the will for him as required by law. Thus, regardless of the notary’s presence, the will was canceled.