Tilley v. Letcher

• Decision Date: 12 June 1919
• Docket Number: 3 Div. 386
• Citation: Tilley v. Letcher, 203 Ala. 277, 82 So. 527 (Ala. 1919)
• Parties: TILLEY v. LETCHER.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

82 So. 527

203 Ala. 277

TILLEY v. LETCHER.

3 Div. 386

Supreme Court of Alabama

June 12, 1919

Appeal from Circuit Court, Montgomery County; Gaston Gunter, Judge.

Bill by Claudia C. Letcher against Marion Letcher and others to construe a will of F.M. Letcher, deceased. John S. Tilley was appointed guardian for the minors, and from the decree construing the will he appeals. Reversed and remanded in part, and affirmed in part.

Omitting immaterial parts, the will is as follows:

Item 2. I give and bequeath to my stepdaughter, Annie C Loveless, the sum of five hundred ($500.00) dollars, and direct my executor to pay said sum to the said Annie C Loveless as soon after the termination of the life estate of Claudia C. Letcher created by the next item as practicable.

Item 3. To my beloved wife, Claudia C. Letcher, I give bequeath and devise all my property of every kind and character, for and during the term of her natural life, and after her death, I give, bequeath and devise the said property to my children Marion, Julian, Metcalf, Tolbert and Claudia Shackleford, and to my granddaughter Frances Claudia Letcher share and share alike, subject to the conditions and restrictions hereinafter expressed.

Item 4. The share of the said Frances Claudia Shackleford shall be held in trust for her by my son J.T. Letcher until the marriage of said Frances Claudia Letcher. The said J.T Letcher as such trustee shall use the income accruing from the property held in trust for the said Frances Claudia Letcher for her support, education and maintenance and he is authorized to use the principal for such purposes should it be necessary. In case of the death of the said Frances Claudia Letcher before the termination of this trust, the property held in trust for her shall revert to my children named in item three of this will or their descendants and the trustee shall deliver and distribute the said property to them, share and share alike, provided that the share of Claudia Shackleford shall be held in trust for her as provided in item five of this will.

Item 5. The share of the said Claudia Shackleford shall be held in trust for her by my son J.T. Letcher during the life of the said Claudia Shackleford, and after her death in trust for the children of the said Claudia Shackleford until they shall have become twenty-one years of age. The said J.T Letcher shall pay over to the said Claudia Shackleford the income arising from her said property and in case of her death shall use the said income for the support, maintenance and education of her children. He may also use the principal for the support, maintenance and education of the said children if it should be necessary. In case the said Claudia Shackleford should die without surviving children, the said property held in trust for her shall revert to the persons named in item three of this will or their descendants.

Item 6. The trustee authorized and created by items four and five of this will shall have the authority and right to sell, exchange or otherwise dispose of any property held by him in trust under the provisions of items four and five and invest the proceeds in such manner as he may think best. It is the purpose of this provision to permit any particular property to be sold as often as necessary so long as the trustee shall preserve the respective estates created by items four and five. The word children in item five shall be taken to mean children born before and after the execution of this will, and the descendants of any of the said children that may be dead.

Item 7. I nominate and appoint my son J.T. Letcher, executor of this my last will and testament without bond, and I hereby authorize and empower him to sell or otherwise dispose of all or any of the property bequeathed and devised by this will as may be necessary for the purpose of making an equitable and fair division thereof among the devisees thereof.

Frances Claudia Letcher survives unmarried, and Claudia Shackleford also survives with her two children, Frances and Helen. J.T Letcher qualified as executor of the will, but died while serving in that capacity and while acting as trustee under items 4 and 5 of the will. Upon his death, Claudia C. Letcher, surviving widow of the testator, was appointed and qualified as administratrix cum testamento annexo de bonis non, and she files this bill. The circuit court held that the trusts vested in J.T. Letcher under items 4, 5, and 6 and the powers granted to him as executor under item 7 of the will were personal and confidential and were terminated by the death of said J.T. Letcher, and that no trustee should be appointed in his place; and decreed that the said ...