Ford's Estate, In re

• Decision Date: 03 March 1964
• Citation: 23 Wis.2d 60,126 N.W.2d 573
• Parties: In re ESTATE of Eleanor Abbott FORD, Dec'd. Edward SMART, Appellant, v. ESTATE of Eleanor Abbott FORD, dec'd., et al., Respondents.
• Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

Page 573

126 N.W.2d 573

23 Wis.2d 60

In re ESTATE of Eleanor Abbott FORD, Dec'd Edward SMART, Appellant, v. ESTATE of Eleanor Abbott FORD, dec'd., et al., Respondents.

Supreme Court of Wisconsin.

March 3, 1964.

Robert R. Biglow, Minneapolis, Robert N. Ledin, Washburn, of counsel, Jack R. DeWitt, Madison, for appellant.

Norlin & Spears, Washburn, for respondent.

BEILFUSS, Justice.

Transaction with the deceased. The trial court correctly held the claimant Smart was incompetent to testify as to any transactions or communications between himself and the decedent Mrs. Ford as being prohibited under the so-called 'dead man's statute,' sec. 325.16, Stats. ¹ Clearly Smart is a party to the controversy, he has a financial interest in the outcome and seeks to prove his claim by his testimony which relates to a transaction or communication had by the witness personally with the deceased. ²

Agency of the husband. The claimant contends that Mr. Ford was agent of the deceased and that he made statements and oral promises to the claimant outside her presence and in her presence and that she did not protest nor comment upon promises made by Mr. Ford in her presence.

The testimony by Smart which establishes the agency is as follows:

'Q. Now, who did you first contact when you were hired out there?

'A. You mean in 1946?

'Q. Yes.

'A. I first met Les Holms * * * the manager at the time * * * he is the one that took my application. * * *

'Q. And did you have any contact with Mr. Ford at that time?

'A. Yes, Mr. Ford came up after I was hired and approved of the hiring.

'Q. He approved of your being hired * * * himself?

'A. Yes.

'Q. And subsequent to that, did Mr. Ford do any hiring and firing himself?

'A. Yes * * * yes, he did * * * he personally dismissed Les Holms and more or less hired me to replace him.

'Q. And did Mr. Ford write any checks on this business?

'A. Yes, he did * * * he had his own personal checks which he signed W. R. Ford.

'Q. Did he give you directions from time to time as to what duties to perform?

'A. Yes, he did.

'Q. And what duties not to perform?

'A. Yes, he did.

'Q. And did he, to your knowledge, instruct some of the other employees what to do from time to time?

'A. Yes, he did.'

The testimony given by Smart in an adverse examination before trial sharply contradicts this testimony. ³

The trial court held that agency was not established. We concluded that if only the testimony given at the trial is to be considered the agency relationship was established.

The rule of agency between husband and wife in so far as third persons are concerned is stated in DeByle v. Roberts (1956), 273 Wis. 648, 652-653, 79 N.W.2d 115, 118:

'The Wisconsin rule in cases of apparent authority of an agent is stated in McDermott v. Jackson, 97 Wis. 64, 73, 72 N.W. 375, 378, as follows:

"Did the third person, because of appearances for which the principal was responsible, believe and have reasonable ground to believe that the agent possessed power to act for the principal in the particular transaction? If such third person was, in the exercise of reasonable prudence, justified in believing that the agent possessed the necessary authority, then the principal is responsible to such third person the same as if the agent possessed all the power he assumed to possess.'

'That quotation was cited with approval in Voell v. Klein, 184 Wis. 620, 622, 200 N.W. 364.

'Restatement, Agency, p. 65, sec. 22, states the rule as follows:

"b. Neither husband nor wife by virtue of the relationship has power to act as agent for the other. The relationship is of such a nature, however, that circumstances which in the case of strangers would not indicate the creation of authority or apparent authority may indicate it in the case of husband or wife. Thus a husband habitually permitted by his wife to attend to some of her business matters may be found to have authority to transact all her business affairs. * * *"

Conversations of the agent or in presence of the agent. The claimant argues with a good deal of persuasion that he should be permitted to testify as to conversations with an agent of the deceased or of conversations by the agent in the presence of the deceased. The gist of his argument is that the agent of the deceased is available to offer testimony to refute, contradict, qualify or explain the testimony of the claimant so as to fairly protect the interests of the estate of the deceased.

Throughout the years, the 'dead man's statute' has been subjected to criticism by eminent legal authorities. ⁴ In spite of these criticiams the legislature has seen fit to neither abolish nor effectively to amend the statute, nor has this court by construction relaxed its effect. ⁵

No case has been cited nor have we found one where this court has permitted, over proper objection, an interested survivor to testify as to conversations or transactions with or in the presence of an agent of the deceased.

We did say in Gulbrandsen v. Chaseburg State Bank (1941), 236 Wis. 391, 403-404, 295 N.W. 729, 735:

'* * * But defendants now contend, in seeking to justify the admission of the testimony in question, that sec. 325.16, Stats., which bars such testimony in relation to conversations with a deceased, does not apply when the conversation was in the presence of a third person who,--as Henry Lietke in the case at bar,--is in fact the opposite party in the action and is himself in a position to take the stand and testify as to the conversation. The contention cannot be sustained. There is no such exception by virtue of any provision in sec. 325.16, Stats. The only case construing that statute, which is cited by defendants, is Lowry v. Lowry, 211 Wis. 385, 247 N.W. 323, 248 N.W. 472. That case is, however, not in point. The witness whose competency to testify was under consideration was an agent of the deceased and not, as in the case at bar, himself a party to the action whose interest therein was adverse to that of the deceased. On the other hand, that testimony which is otherwise incompetent and barred under sec. 325.16, Stats., is not rendered competent by reason of the fact that the transaction in question occurred in the presence of other persons who are mere intermediaries has been held in Brader v. Brader, 110 Wis. 423, 85 N.W. 681; Morgan v. Henry, 115 Wis. 27, 90 N.W. 1012; and in Anderson v. Laugen, 122 Wis. 57, 61, 99 N.W. 437, the testimony of a witness, which was otherwise incompetent under sec. 325.16, Stats., was held to continue to be inadmissible even though the witness' transaction with the deceased took place in the presence of other persons who had an interest in the litigation. Consequently, in the absence of some provision in sec. 325.16, Stats., rendering testimony, which is otherwise incompetent thereunder, admissible because the transaction was in the presence of a third person who had an interest in the cause of action and is available and able to take the stand as a witness, the testimony given by Lowe as to his conversations with Emma Lietke was incompetent and should have been excluded upon plaintiff's objection.'

We, therefore, hold that the claimant Smart was incompetent to testify as to conversations with deceased or, in her presence, with the husband-agent of the deceased, as being transactions with the deceased personally.

As to conversations between the claimant and the husband-agent individually, the claimant has not proven an agreement sufficiently definite to enforce.

Admissibility of the adverse examination of the claimant. The claimant contends that the 'door was opened' so as to permit his testimony by virtue of the fact that he was examined adversely on the subject by the executor prior to trial.

The claimant was not examined adversely at the trial nor did the executor offer the adverse examination taken before trial. The claimant further contends that the whole probate record was offered and received without objection and the adverse examination was a part of the record.

In the case of Estate of Shinoe (1933), 212 Wis. 481, 485-486, 250 N.W. 505, 507, an omnibus offer of all records, files, and papers in the estate was made by the claimant. Included in the file were two adverse examinations of the claimant. We held there:

'We are of opinion that in this state of the record the adverse examinations cannot be considered as in evidence. No specific mention was made of the adverse examinations. They were clearly not receivable when offered, as the claimant was incompetent under section 325.16, Stats., to testify to any transaction or communication by him personally with the decedent and at that time there had been no 'opening of the door' by contestant. Upon the trial counsel opposing the claim had objected on the ground stated to every question put to the claimant involving a transaction with the deceased and the court had sustained the objections. Had a specific offer of the examinations been made, he would certainly have objected to them on this ground.

'Moreover, the adverse examinations of the claimant could not be put in evidence by the claimant himself. * * *'

The trial court properly held that the adverse examinations of claimant Smart taken before trial were not a part of the evidence.

Quantum meruit recovery. The claimant alternately claims that he should be allowed to recover additional compensation upon the grounds that he has not been compensated for the reasonable value of his services.

The claimant was paid upon a monthly basis and in addition thereto was given his groceries and his living quarters at a nominal rental of $10 per month. The record reveals that Smart was paid at an increasing rate from 1948 to 1960, from approximately $1,900 to $3,645 per annum.

As to this issue the trial court in its memorandum opinion stated:

'IV. Burden of proof required

'1. Claimant has the burden of proof to establish his claim by a fair preponderance of the credible evidence. He must overcome the...