Graham v. Anderson
| Decision Date | 11 October 1983 |
| Docket Number | No. 2-782A216,2-782A216 |
| Citation | 454 N.E.2d 870 |
| Parties | George H. GRAHAM, et al., Appellants (Plaintiffs Below), v. Wilson G. ANDERSON, Executor of the Estate of Lois May Graham, Wilson G. Anderson, Executor of the Estate of Edith Anderson, Appellee (Defendant Below). |
| Court | Indiana Appellate Court |
William Byer, Ronald C. Tucker, Anderson, for appellants.
Harold J. Anderson, Anderson, for appellee.
This appeal arises from an action to construe a will and determine heirship filed by the nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews of the decedent, Lois M. Graham. Lois died January 9, 1980. She had never married and had no children. She lived with two of her sisters who also never married, both of whom predeceased her. At one time Lois had seven brothers and sisters, all of whom predeceased her with the exception of one, Edith Anderson.
The estate was originally opened when Lois' nephew, Wilson G. Anderson, an attorney, petitioned the court for Letters of Administration and Edith was appointed Administrator. Approximately three weeks later, on January 24, 1980, Wilson offered for probate an executed carbon copy of Lois' will which had been discovered in Lois' home by the Indiana State Police during their investigation of her death. Wilson had drafted Lois' will in 1949; however, the original was destroyed in a fire at his office in 1978. The court appointed Wilson to be Executor, pursuant to the nomination in the will. The will provided that the entire estate was to go to Lois' six brothers and sisters equally, since at the time the will was executed, her seventh sister was already deceased.
At the time of Lois' death, all of her brothers and sisters were deceased except Edith Anderson, the mother of Wilson G. Anderson. She was listed in the petition for Letters as sole legatee and beneficiary of Lois' estate. On May 5, 1980, Edith died, leaving her entire estate to Wilson and his sister.
Subsequently, the appellants, who are the descendants of Lois' predeceased brothers and sisters named as legatees in her will, petitioned for construction of the will. They contended that the five-sixths bequest of Lois' estate should not lapse, but should instead pass by intestate succession. The petitioners sought to introduce extrinsic evidence which they claimed would show that Lois intended to benefit the descendants of her predeceased brothers and sisters, but the trial court refused it.
The trial court entered a judgment ordering the balance of the property in Lois' estate to be paid and transferred to Edith's estate as the sole surviving beneficiary. The appellants have appealed the trial court's judgment and present the following issues for review:
(1) whether the trial court erred in refusing to allow extrinsic evidence to show a latent ambiguity in Lois' will; 1
(2) whether the law in Indiana with respect to the death of some, but not all, residuary beneficiaries is contrary to public policy and violative of other principles of common law; and
(3) whether the appellants are entitled to five-sixths of Lois' estate.
This Court addressed itself to the question of the use of extrinsic evidence to clarify ambiguities in the case of Hauck v. Second National Bank of Richmond, (1972) 153 Ind.App. 245, 286 N.E .2d 852.
* * *
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153 Ind.App. at 261-262, 286 N.E.2d at 862.
Therefore, in order for the trial court to have properly considered any of the extrinsic evidence proferred by the appellants, a latent ambiguity would first have to be demonstrated.
Lois' will provided:
Appellants contend that there are certain facts and circumstances which can be proven extrinsically to disclose a latent ambiguity. They assert:
1) there is a rebuttable presumption that the will was honestly drawn and the scrivener in this instance was the recipient of one-half of the estate. 2
2) There is a rebuttable presumption that Lois acted with advice and learning in the drafting of her will; however, in this instance the drafter was an interested party.
3) There is a rebuttable presumption that Lois knew the law of...
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