In re the Construction of the Will of Lumb
Opinion of the Court
Deceased’s will bequeaths his residuary estate to one of his sisters “ and to her heirs and assigns forever ” but provides that should such sister predecease deceased the residuary be paid to a nephew “ and to his heirs and assigns forever Both the sister and the nephew predeceased deceased. The general rule is that the quoted expressions are to be construed as words of inheritance and not words of purchase. That such locutions were not intended by deceased to create substitutional gifts is evidenced by his explicit substitution of the gift to his nephew in the event deceased’s sister predeceased him.
The court holds that in the light of the actual survivorship of the residuary legatees of deceased, the will makes no effective disposition of the estate and the assets constituting such residuary pass in intestacy.
The court does not enter into the detail of the administration of an estate and no occasion for any intervention here exists in view of the agreement of the parties expressed in the stipula
Submit, on notice, decree construing the will.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.