Central Trust Co. v. Watt

31 Ohio Law. Abs. 467, 17 Ohio Op. 456, 1940 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 421
CourtCourt of Common Pleas of Ohio, Hamilton County
DecidedMarch 21, 1940
DocketNo. A-57290
StatusPublished

This text of 31 Ohio Law. Abs. 467 (Central Trust Co. v. Watt) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Common Pleas of Ohio, Hamilton County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Central Trust Co. v. Watt, 31 Ohio Law. Abs. 467, 17 Ohio Op. 456, 1940 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 421 (Ohio Super. Ct. 1940).

Opinion

OPINION

By SCHWAB, J.

This is an action brought by the plaintiff under the following state of facts:

On June 22, 1910, the plaintiff entered into an agreement in writing with John S. Conner, now deceased, under the provisions of which John S. Conner assigned, transferred and delivered to the plaintiff the corporate stocks and securities enumerated in the agreement, to be held by the plaintiff in trust for the uses and purposes therein set forth. John S. Conner died on July 11, 1911, and Levietta B. Conner, his wife, died on November 23, 1930. The defendant, Edna B. C. Watt, is the daughter of John S. Conner, and in the trust agreement is named as the beneficiary of an annuity of $1000, to be paid to her for life out of the income of the trust. Under the provisions of the trust the net income therefrom was payarte, and the plaintiff as trustee paid the same to John S. Conner during his life, and on his death there was payable, and the plaintiff did pay, and is now paying the same, to Edna B. C. Watt, daughter of John S. Conner, out of the income, in quarterly installments of $250.00 each, the sum of $1000 per annum. The balance of the net income from the trust was payable, and the plaintiff as trustee did pay the same, in quarterly installments ' to Levietta B. Conner, wife of John S. Conner, each year until her death.

John S. Conner provided in the trust agreement for the disposition, after the death of his wife, of the income over and above the annuity of $1000 to be paid to his daughter, as foliows:

“Should my wife die before my daughter, (and my daughter then be receiving and continue to receive said annual sum of $1000 as aforesaid), then all the remainder of the net income, (above the aforesaid sum of $1000 to my daughter) , shall thereafter (unless my daughter,' in the meantime, should die, or forfeit her right to said sum of $1000). be held and paid out as follows, viz: The sum of One Thousand ($1000) Dollars annually shall be paid over to the ultimate beneficiary of the trust estate, as hereinafter created, for immediate use, year by year, for the purpose hereinafter specified, and the baiance shall, from time to time and as rapidly as possible, be invested; and when said investments from said income together with the balance of the trust estate, not required for the raising of the $1000 annual income payments to my daughter, amount in market value to the sum of Fifty Thousand ($50,000) Dollars, then such payment of $1,000 annually to such beneficiary of the trust, and such investment of income shall cease, and this trust so far as it is applicable to said property of said value of $50,000, (unless the whole trust has been earlier terminated by the deaths of my wife and daughter, or by the death of my wife, and forfeiture of right and claim to said annual sum of $1000 by my daughter), shall at once cease and terminate; and then said Trust Company shall assign, transfer, make over, and deliver to said ultimate beneficary of the trust estate said $50,000 in market value of securities, the same thereafter to be held, invested, and used by said beneficiary as hereinafter stipulated; but such transfer of said $53,000 shall in no way affect the remainder of the trust fund and estate, and the trust connected' therewith, and such remainder shall be held during the life of my daughter, (or until her forfeiture of her right to said $1000, if she should forfeit the same).”

The ultimate beneficiary of the annuity of $1000, and of the accumulation of the balance of the income from said [469]*469trust which John S. Conner directed be invested until it aggregateo a capital fund of $50,000, referred to in the above provisions of the trust, has not as yet been determined, and can not be determined without the aid and direction of the court, for the reasons hereinafter set forth.

Clause 3 of the trust agreement provides as follows:

“After the death of my wife and ■also of my daughter, (if my daughter shares m the income as aforesaid), then this whole trust shall at once cease and terminate; and said Trust Company shall then transfer, make over, deliver and pay over all the securities of every kind then in its Lands, and the accrued and collected net income thereon, to such Institution, Charity. Corporation, individual or Individuals, as 1, in my lifetime, may in writing direct, which writing shall be addressed to and delivered to said Trust Company; or, if I should die before executing and delivering said writing, then, (Having full confidence in the judgment of my wife, and knowing her full sympathy with my views in the matter), to such Institution, Charity, corporation, individual or individuals, as my saict wife shall, before her death, designate in writing addressed to and delivered tc said Trust Company.

“But in case both I and my wife should die before having so designated in writing the beneficiary ot said property, then said Trust Company shall assign, transfer, make over, deliver and pay over all of said property to Dartmouth College of Hanover, New Hampshire, the same to be forevei kept separate from other funds and property of said College, and to be known and designated as the ‘John Sanborn Conner Fund’, the income alone ever to be used, and that only in assisting worthy students to obtain their education at said College; and the students receiving such aid shall, or shah not repay the same, as soon as they reasonably are able so to do, as the college authorities in each case may determine.”

On September 21, 1914, a'most three years after the death of ner husband, Levietta B. Conner addressed a communication and delivered same to the plaintiff herein, which reads as follows:

“Cincinnati, Ohio, September 21, 1914.

The Central Trust & Safe ' Deposit Company, Trustee of the Fund established by John S. Conner.

Gentlemen:

In connection with the Trust created by John S. Conner (now deceased) dated the 22nd day of June A. D. 1910, with such modifications ac have been made by the said John S. Conner, in his lifetime, and for the purpose of designating the ultimate beneficiary of said Trust, in accordance with his directions therein, that I should make such designation, I hereby desígnate the beneficiaries of said Trust co be in accordance with the express wishes of my deceased husband, John S. Conner, as set forth in the foregoing letter, wnich he addressed to me on December 24, 1910. I may make some changes in the students and persons who are to receive the benefit of the education provided for in the foregoing letter, but such modifications will be made by me, in writing and unless so made, these instructions shall be final.

Yours very truly,

Levietta B. Conner. ’

Witness: Philip Hinkle. ■

To this letter was appended a letter of John S. Conner to his wife under date of December 24, 1910, which reads, as follows:

“Cincinnati, Ohio, December 24, 1910.. “Dear Etta:

As I may not be able to carry out or distinctly state in writing to The Central Trust Company and to you various-[470]*470ideas that I have with respect to the ultimate beneficiary of the trust fund, and of certain wishes that I have as to Edna, I now dictate this letter to you, not as binding you in any way, but as a suggestion to you • what my wishes are if you can conveniently carry them out, and you deem them best at the time you do attempt to carry them out.

First — as to the ultimate beneficiary of the trust fund.

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Related

Wilmington Trust Co. v. Wilmington Trust Co.
180 A. 597 (Court of Chancery of Delaware, 1935)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
31 Ohio Law. Abs. 467, 17 Ohio Op. 456, 1940 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 421, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/central-trust-co-v-watt-ohctcomplhamilt-1940.