Ralls v. Johnson
Ralls v. Johnson
Opinion of the Court
The will of Thomas L. Johnson, deceased, is by this appeal presented for construction. The reporter will set it out in the statement of facts.
“If there he a clear gift, it is not to be cut down by anything subsequent which does not, with reasonable certainty, indicate the intention of the testator to cut it down, but the maxim cannot mean that you are to institute a comparison between the two classes as to lucidity.” Randfield v. Randfield, 8 House of Lords Cas. 224, 235.
If, therefore, the provisions of item 3 are limited by the subsequent provisions of the will, this intention of the testator must be clearly and explicitly shown; that is to say, the subsequent provisions of the will must indicate with reasonable certainty the intention of the testator to cut down the estate disposed of in item 3 as “the rest and residue” of his estate.
Though paragraph 3 directed an equal distribution of the “residue” of the estate, yet it is equally clear from the subsequent provisions of the will that it was testator’s intention to impose a trust on-this residue of his estate for maintenance and support (item six), and to subject his two homes to a limited use or estate as specifically declared in items 4 and 5 of the will; that is to say, to provide for the payment annually, by his personal representative, of a sum sufficient for the necessary support and maintenance of the several dependent members of his family indicated, and to provide an additional sum for the proper education of the two minors named, and also to provide a home for his two families for the time indicated. No discretionary power to fix this necessary maintenance, to say what would constitute the suitable education of his minor children, or to determine as to the occupancy of the two *181 homes, was left to his executor. Nor did testator leave it to the discretion of his executor to pay any sum he might see fit for maintenance and education, but provided that the same must be necessary and sufficient. Thus regard for the condition and station in life of testator and of those for whom he was providing must be had.
The chancellor was correct in his interpretation of item 6 that it was the intention of the testator to give to his widow and his two minor children and his two unmarried daughters, to be paid each year, a sum sufficient for their maintenance and support, and that the amounts so to be expended were not intended to be treated as advancements and charged to the distributive share or shares of the widow, said two minor children, and said two unmarried daughters. The “said” wife and children for whom maintenance and support was provided in item 6 were named in the two immediately preceding sections of the will, where provision was made that they should retain “rent free” the respective homes.
The will directed the annual payment of the maintenance provided for the wife and her two minor children by testator. Since the testator did'not direct that such payments should be made from any particular fund, or specified distributive share, it Is clear that these maintenance payments were intended to be made from the corpus of the estate, and that the corpus was impressed with this trust. Sistrunk v. Ware, 69 Ala. 273; Coleman v. Camp, 36 Ala. 159. This provision for the support of the widow and her children and for the education of these children was an additional legacy to them to that given in item 3 of the will.
The interest devised in paragraphs 4 and 5 was an estate to be terminated upon the happening of the contingency respectively indicated in each item. The case of Scruggs v. Yancey, 188 Ala. 682, 66 South. 23, supports this contention. Stein v. Gordon, 92 Ala. 532, 9 South. 741; Guesnard v. Guesnard, 173 Ala. 258, 55 South. 524; 1 Jarm. on Wills (6th Ed.) *741, 759. A devise of the “free use” (Cook v. Gerrard, 1 Saund. 181), or of the “use and occupation” (Wittome v. Lamb, 12 M. & Wels. 813 ; Rebbeth v. Squire, 19 Beav. 70; Mannox v. Greener, L. R. 14 Eq. 456), of land, passes an estate in the land, and consequently a right to let or assign it (Wynne v. Walthall, supra; Wilson v. Curtis, 90 Me. 463, 38 Atl. 365).
The very terms of the will place the court in the position of the testator at the time of its execution. Erom them its general scope or plan is apparent (Murphy v. Carlin, 113 Mo. 112, 20 S. W. 786, 35 Am. St. Rep. 701), and the extent of the personal trust created is plain. The testator had in mind to authorize his son, the executor named, to conduct the affairs of hjs estate, after the manner pursued by the testator, for the time indicated, if in the judgment and discretion of this executor he could keep the general estate together for 20 years from testator’s death, except to the extent that he must provide and disburse the amounts necessary for maintenance, support, and education, within the designated periods, and not disturb the occupancy and use of the two respective estates created by items 4 and 5 for the two families.
In so far as the will reposed a personal trust in Mentor B. Johnson, his death before the execution of such trust left no function to be exercised by the administrator. Anderson v. McGowan, 45 Ala. 462; Tarver v. Haines, 55 Ala. 503; Mitchell v. Spence, supra; Hinson v. Williamson, 74 Ala. 180; Robinson v. Allison, 74 Ala. 254; Werborn v. Austin, supra; Christian v. A. F. L. M. Co., 92 Ala. 130, 9 South. 219; Crenshaw v. Crenshaw, 127 Ala. 208, 28 South. 396. But moneys expended by the executor in the administration of the personal trust, to wit, for maintenance, for the improvement of the homes, or of either home, or for any other purpose proper under his discretionary power, 'are not proper charges as advancements, to be deducted from the distributive share of the devisee or legatee receiving the benefit.
The personal and discretionary powers with which' the executor, Mentor B. Johnson, was clothed, authorized him to keep the estate together for 20 years should he see fit (item 7),, or to sell, dispose of, and convey any or all property of the estate, on such terms and at such prices as he would allow if he owned the property, in all respects as fully and completely as the testator could sell and convey, for any purpose that he might think proper, and without interference by any one, after the funds for maintenance, education, etc., provided for in items 4, 5, and 6 were secured.
In Ashurst’s Case, 175 Ala. 667, 57 South. 442, the personal representative did not have the unqualified right of removal, but the necessity for a construction of the will and for the administration of the trust .was sufficiently averred to authorize the removal to the chancery court at the insistence of the personal representative. Thus the right of the personal representative to have the removal of the estate from the probate court to the chancery court is differentiated from the unqualified right of a legatee or devisee to have such removal where there exist equitable grounds therefor.
The decree of the chancellor is affirmed.
Affirmed.
Addendum
On Application for Rehearing.,
No general rule can be stated that will always determine when the beneficial interest was intended to be conveyed or when a trust was created. The intention mu§t in each case be gathered from the general purpose and scope of the instrument. Berry on Trusts, §§ 82, 151, 158; Cresswell’s Adm’r v. Jones, 68 Ala. 420; McCarthy’s Case, 74 Ala. 546, 552; Colton v. Colton, 127 U. S. 300, 310, 8 Sup. Ct. 1164, 32 L. Ed. 136.
It /may not be requisite and necessary that the entire estate be kept together for the period for which such charges are provided to be made, hut that au ample sum to meet these expenditures can be otherwise marshaled, and retained by the personal representative. This would somewhat depend on the ■ amount, nature, and character of the estate, and on the reasonable necessities of the beneficiaries in the light of the purposes of the will. On this póint the decree of the chancellor is reversed, and the cause is remanded for further consideration under the pleading and the proof.. In all other respects the decree is affirmed.
Affirmed in part, and in part reversed and remanded.
Reference
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- RALLS Et Al. v. JOHNSON Et Al.
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