Schmidt v. Claus
Decision Date | 16 December 1958 |
Docket Number | No. 49471,49471 |
Citation | 93 N.W.2d 592,250 Iowa 314 |
Parties | Helen T. SCHMIDT, Appellee, v. Anna CLAUS and Charles Claus, her husband; Leonard Schmidt and Mary Schmidt, his wife; George Schmidt and Minnie Schmidt, his wife; and Lamke Schmidt, Appellants. |
Court | Iowa Supreme Court |
DeWolf, Goodman & Huisman, Grundy Center and Lundy, Butler, Lundy & Wilson, Eldora, for appellants.
B. E. Hunter, Reinbeck, and Garrett & Bown, Corydon, for appellee.
This is a suit for the construction of the will of C. J. Schmidt, who died in 1943, and to quiet title to a share in approximately 438 acres of farm land in Grundy County and a town lot in Wellsburg, of all of which he died seized. His will provided, in part:
Paragraph One--for the payment of debts, etc.
'This provision for my said wife to be in lieu of all her dower and statutory rights in my estate.
C. J. Schmidt's widow Lamke Schmidt survived him and elected to take under his will. His four children, named in the will as beneficiaries, also survived him. One of said children, John C. Schmidt, or John Schmidt, subsequently married and, in 1956, died testate, leaving his wife, plaintiff Helen T. Schmidt, him surviving, to whom he devised his entire estate, absolutely. She brought this suit against the three other children of C. J. Schmit, their respective spouses, and Lamke Schmidt the widow of C. J. Schmidt, to quiet title to an undivided one fourth interest in the real estate, subject to the life estate of Lamke Schmidt. Plaintiff's petition alleges that by reason of the unequivocal devise in Par. 3 of the will of C. J. Schmidt, John Schmidt became the absolute owner in fee simple of an undivided one fourth of his entire estate upon the death of said C. J. Schmidt, subject only to the life estate of Lamke Schmidt, and that the interest of John Schmidt passed to plaintiff Helen T. Schmidt under John's will.
The Conclusions of Law of the trial court recite:
The court adjudged that plaintiff Helen T. Schmidt was the absolute owner of an undivided one fourth interest in the real estate and quieted title thereto in her against the defendants except as to the life estate of Lamke Schmidt. Defendants have appealed.
We affirm the judgment of the distinguished trial court. Paragraph Three of the will of C. J. Schmidt provides: 'After the death of my said wife * * * I give, devise and bequeath to my four children (naming them), all my entire estate * * * share and share alike, to be theirs absolutely.'
I. In Paragraph Two testator's widow had been given his entire estate for her life. Paragraph Three gave his entire estate after her death, to his four named children. The meaning of the language used is too clear to be questioned. No other conditions, or limitations were attached to either of these gifts. The last word in Paragraph Three is 'absolutely'. As there used it means 'in fee simple.' Baker v. Elder, 223 Iowa 395, 397, 272 N.W. 153; Tague v. Tague, 248 Iowa 1258, 1264, 85 N.W.2d 22; Iowa City State Bank v. Pritchard, 199 Iowa 676, 678, 202 N.W. 512. Although words of this character are unnecessary to convey title in fee simple, their...
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Roberts' Estate, In re
...will defeat or destroy his gift or limit the enjoyment of the thing given.' This view was specifically reaffirmed in Schmidt v. Claus, 250 Iowa 314, 317, 93 N.W.2d 592, 594. We find no fault with this rule of law and recognize that, whether it be called a repugnancy or an inconsistency, any......
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Krimlofski v. United States
...have been held inadmissible in Iowa, however, in order to aid in the interpretation of a provision in a will. Schmidt v. Claus, 1958, 250 Iowa 314, 93 N.W.2d 592, 595; In re Estate of Miller, 1952, 243 Iowa 920, 54 N.W.2d 433, 36 A.L.R.2d 139. An excellent discussion of hearsay evidence app......
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Christian's Estate, Matter of
...characterizes the quality of the estate given. See, e.g., Gamester v. Massey, 129 Ind.App. 522, 158 N.E.2d 805 (1959); Schmidt v. Claus, 250 Iowa 314, 93 N.W.2d 592 (1958); Pritchett v. Corder, 105 S.W. 910 (Ky.1907); Rogers v. Rogers, 221 S.C. 360, 70 S.E.2d 637 ...
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Logan's Estate, In re
...devises a fee simple title in all real estate that would properly pass under its provisions as well as in all personalty. Schmidt v. Claus, 250 Iowa 314, 93 N.W.2d 592; In re Estate of Lewis, 248 Iowa 227, 80 N.W.2d 347; and citations in each. See Annotation, 17 A.L.R.2d Appellees contend, ......