ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to draw out the way in which the protection of marriage and of married spouses, particularly as conventionally understood-that is, formalized by marriage, between spouses of two different sexes-is one of successions laws central ambitions insofar as testamentary devolution is concerned. It describes successions laws efforts to preserve the integrity of marital relationships, primarily through jurisprudence developed in connection with testamentary gifts rendered conditional on a beneficiary s civil status. The chapter consider the way in which the law of wills protects married spouses as heirs. It describes the content of the spousal relationship as conveyed through legal rules and doctrines within the law of wills and estates. The analysis here reveals the expectations that inhere to spouses and their relationships with one another, as communicated through juridical authorities deriving from the domain of wills and estates. The chapter highlights the potential risks assumed by those who survive their partners within un-formalized, interdependent relations.
