Godwin v. Wachovia Bank & Trust Co., 670
Decision Date | 14 June 1963 |
Docket Number | No. 670,670 |
Citation | 259 N.C. 520,131 S.E.2d 456 |
Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
Parties | N. H. GODWIN, Trustee for Angier Avenue Baptist Church, et al. v. WACHOVIA BANK & TRUST COMPANY, Executor Under the Purported Last Will and Testament of Frank C. Griffin, Deceased, Charlie C. Griffin and Essie Lenora Griffin Stevenson. |
Bryant, Lipton, Bryant & Battle, Durham, for plaintiff appellant.
Spears, Spears & Barnes, Durham, for defendants appellees.
It is universally recognized in this country that a power of attorney, unless coupled with an interest, is terminated by the death of the principal. The power of attorney involved in this case was not coupled with an interest and was revoked upon the death of Nell J Griffin. Fisher v. Southern Loan & Trust Co., 138 N.C. 90, 50 S.E. 592; Citizens Bank v. Grove, 202 N.C. 143, 162 S.E.204; Dowling v. Winters, 208 N.C. 521, 181 S.E. 751; Julian v. Lawton, 240 N.C. 436, 82 S.E.2d 210.
The execution of the trust agreement under consideration was not acknowledged as required by G.S. § 52-12. Even so, Chapter 1178 of the 1957 Session Laws of North Carolina purports to cure this defect. The Act, which became effective 10 June 1957, provides: 'Any contract between husband and wife coming within the provisions of G.S. § 52-12 executed between July 1, 1955 and the effective date of this Section which does not comply with the requirement of a private examination of the wife and which is in all other respects regular is hereby validated and confirmed to the same extent as if the examination of the wife had been separate and apart from the husband.'
Our decisions have been to the effect that an attempted conveyance by a wife to the husband, directly or indirectly, without the private examination and certificate as required by G.S. § 52-12, is absolutely void. Foster v. Williams, 182 N.C. 632, 109 S.E. 834; Ingram v. Easley, 227 N.C. 442, 42 S.E.2d 624, and cases cited therein; Honeycutt v. Citizens National Bank, 242 N.C. 734, 89 S.E.2d 598; Davis v. Vaughn, 243 N.C. 486, 91 S.E.2d 165.
We have also expressed doubt as to whether or not such defective acknowledgment could be rendered valid by a subsequently passed statute. Foster v. Williams, supra. Be that as it may, conceding but not deciding that this trust agreement was void as an inter vivos or active trust during the lifetime of the Griffins, such agreement was incorporated in the respective wills of the Griffins by reference and made an integral part thereof as effectively, in our opinion, as if the trust agreement had been set out in full in each of the Griffins' wills.
In the case of Watson v. Hinson, 162 N.C. 72, 77 S.E. 1089, Hoke, J., speaking for the Court said:
In 94 C.J.S. Wills § 163, page 952, et seq., it is said:
In Montgomery v. Blankenship, 217 Ark. 357, 230 S.W.2d 51, 21 A.L.R.2d 212, the Court said: 'As stated in 1 Page on Wills (Lifetime Ed.) Sec. 266, p. 522: 'If incorporated by reference it makes no difference whether the original document of itself was valid at law or not. A deed invalid because it never was delivered, may be incorporated in a will. A prior defectively executed will, or the will of another person, or a part of the will of another person, may thus be incorporated. * * * The incorporated document may be treated as part of the will for the purpose of ascertaining the beneficiaries and the share to be given to each."
In the case of Fifth Third Union Trust Co. v. Wilensky, 79 Ohio App. 73, 70 N.E.2d 920, the Court said: 'A deed, a contract, or any other instrument may be incorporated in a will by reference, and its terms employed as testamentary clauses, although such instrument may have lost its force as to the peculiar original purpose of the document.'
Likewise, in In re Sciutti's Estate, 371 Pa. 536, 92 A.2d 188, it was held that 'an extrinsic writing, having no validity in itself as a will, nevertheless may be incorporated by reference as part of a valid will.'
In the case of Clark v. Citizens National Bank of Collingswood, 38 N.J.Super. 69, 118 A.2d 108, the Court held, contrary to the above views, to the effect that where no valid trust existed, the trust instrument could not be incorporated by reference in a will. However, this seems to be the minority view.
The evidence in this case is to the effect that the Griffins first executed the trust agreement on 13 October 1956 and then immediately thereafter executed their respective wills.
Furthermore, the Griffins were not responsible for the failure of their attorney to have the trust agreement properly executed in accordance with the provisions of G.S. § 52-12. Even so, as stated in Lawrence v. Ashba, 115 Ind.App. 485, 59 N.E.2d 568,
The appellant assigns as error the refusal of the court below to permit the plaintiff to testify regarding the instructions given him by the Griffins in connection with the preparation of the power of attorney, the trust agreement, and the wills involved herein, as well as to conversations with the Griffins in respect thereto. This evidence was excluded by reason of the provisions of G.S. § 8-51.
The testimony of a witness is incompetent under the provisions of the above statute when it appears (1) that such witness is a party, or interested in the event, (2) that his testimony relates to a personal transaction or communication with the...
To continue reading
Request your trial-
Bettencourt v. Bettencourt
...result from contract); Rubenstein v. Mueller, 19 N.Y.2d 228, 231--234, 278 N.Y.S.2d 845, 225 N.E.2d 540; Godwin v. Wachovia Bank & Trust Co., 259 N.C. 520, 529--530, 131 S.E.2d 456 (simultaneously executed wills, incorporating an invalidly executed trust agreement, held evidence of a contra......
-
IN THE MATTER OF BARNES
...213, 216 (2001) (citing In re Will of Lamparter, 348 N.C. 45, 51, 497 S.E.2d 692, 695 (1998))(quoting Godwin v. Wachovia Bank & Trust Co., 259 N.C. 520, 528, 131 S.E.2d 456, 462 (1963)); see also N.C. Gen.Stat. § 8C-1, Rule 601(c) Our Supreme Court has made it eminently clear that: "In cave......
-
Olive v. Biggs
...of their estates in accordance with the agreement, such agreement may be upheld by specific performance.' Godwin v. Wachovia Bank & Trust Co., 259 N.C. 520, 529, 131 S.E.2d 456, 462. Such joint will may, itself, be a sufficient memorandum of such contract to satisfy the Statute of Frauds. G......
-
Mansour v. Rabil
...a consideration to support their agreement to execute jointly a will containing reciprocal provisions.' Accord, Godwin v. Wachovia Bank & Trust Co., 259 N.C. 520, 131 S.E.2d 456. In Godwin our Court quoted with approval from Lawrence v. Ashba, 115 Ind.App. 485, 59 N.E.2d 568, as follows: 'I......