Gibson Ex Rel. Doerner v. Johnson

56 S.W.2d 783, 331 Mo. 1198, 88 A.L.R. 369, 1932 Mo. LEXIS 456
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedDecember 31, 1932
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 56 S.W.2d 783 (Gibson Ex Rel. Doerner v. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gibson Ex Rel. Doerner v. Johnson, 56 S.W.2d 783, 331 Mo. 1198, 88 A.L.R. 369, 1932 Mo. LEXIS 456 (Mo. 1932).

Opinion

*1200 ATWOOD, J.

This appeal has been twice heard and comes to the writer on reassignment. It grows out of a suit instituted by appellants, Mary Green Gibson and Clinton Newberry Gibson, for the partition of 275 acres of land of which their grandfather, Newberry Gibson, died seized. In their petition they allege that they are minors and the sole surviving children of Gideon Gibson, a predeceased son of Newberry Gibson; that the said Newberry Gibson left surviving him his widow, Hester S. Gibson, and two daughters, defendants Dora Smith and Bonnie Johnson, who with plaintiffs constitute his sole surviving descendants; and that he left a will, executed in 1924, neither appellants nor their father being mentioned therein, by which he disposed of his property as follows:

“I give and bequeath to my beloved wife, Hester S. Gibson, all of my property, real and personal or mixed to her sole use and *1201 benefit for her lifetime, and after ber death to my two children, Dora Gibson Smith, and Bonnie Johnson, share and share alike.”

It is also alleged in plaintiffs’ petition that, by way of advancements, decedent conveyed and delivered to defendant, IBonnie Johnson, during his lifetime and prior to the execution of said will, certain real and personal property exceeding $50,000 in value, and as advancements to defendant, Dora Smith, real and personal property exceeding $30,000 in value; that the value of the lands owned by decedent at the time of his death was $25,000; that subject to the widow’s rights therein, which have been acquired by Bonnie Johnson, defendants are each entitled to a one-third interest in the real estate of which decedent died seized, and plaintiffs are each entitled to a one-sixth interest; that all of the property acquired by defendants by way of advancements should be brought into hotchpot in order “that plaintiffs may take their aliquot part of the value of all of said property; ’ ’ and that defendants having both received by way of said advancements their full shares of the estate of said deceased subject to the widow’s rights therein owned by defendant Bonnie Johnson, plaintiffs are entitled to all of said real estate of which decedent died seized. Judgment for partition was prayed in accordance with the allegations of the petition.

Defendants answered admitting certain allegations of the petition, denying all others, alleging that decedent in his lifetime advanced to the father of plaintiffs all of his equal share in decedent’s estate and for that reason omitted naming him in his will, and specifically denying that any advancements were made to defendants.

Plaintiffs’ reply was in the nature of a general denial. It was admitted at the trial that Newberry Gibson died on August 1, 1928; that defendants are the only surviving children of the deceased and that plaintiffs are the only surviving children of Gideon Gibson, a predeceased son of Newberry Gibson; that Newberry Gibson at the time of his death owned the 275 acres sought to be partitioned; that Newberry Gibson left surviving him his widow, Hester S. Gibson; that since the will of Newberry Gibson was probated said widow has conveyed all her interest in the land of which her husband died seized to defendant Bonnie Johnson; that the said widow declined to act as executrix of said will and thereupon P. S. Payne was duly appointed and qualified as executor, and that no final settlement has been made of the estate of said deceased; that plaintiffs are minors and that H. E. Doerner is their duly appointed, qualified and acting curator.

Plaintiffs offered in evidence a certified copy of the will of New-berry Gibson; record of warranty deeds conveying to defendants the *1202 lands described in tbe petition and alleged to be advancements, said deeds being dated Nov. 19, 1910, December 1, 1916, and July 14, 1922, and reciting a consideration of $10 and love and affection, $1 and love and affection, and $10 and love and affection, respectively, and it is admitted that tbe defendants named in said deeds went into possession of tbe lands therein described. Plaintiff also introduced evidence tending to support the values alleged in said petition with respect to tbe lands therein described, also testimony tending to show that Newberry Gibson in bis lifetime gave $23,000 to defendant Bonnie Johnson.

Defendants introduced no evidence and at tbe close of plaintiffs’ case offered a demurrer to the evidence, which was sustained, and decree was entered finding that plaintiffs were each entitled to an undivided one-sixth interest, subject to dower interest owned by defendant Bonnie Johnson, and that defendáis were each entitled to an undivided one-third interest, subject to life estate owned by Bonnie Johnson, in the lands sought to be partitioned, and appointing commissioners to partition said lands.

Appellants contend that being the descendants of Gideon Gibson, who though a son of Newberry Gibson, deceased, was not named or provided for in the will, they are entitled, under the provisions of Section 525, Bevised Statutes 1929, “'to such proportion of the estate of the testator, real and personal, as if he had died intestate;” that if in the distribution of the estate of the deceased they are to be treated as though such ancestor had died intestate then they are entitled to have any real or personal property received by the beneficiaries as advancements brought into hotchpot with the estate of the deceased, as provided in Section 311,' before their proportions are assigned. These statutes, in the order mentioned, are as follows:

Sec. 525. “If any person make his last will, and die, leaving a child or children, or descendants of such child or children in ease of their death, not named or provided for in such will, although born after the making of such will, or the death of the testator, every such testator, so far as shall regard any such child or children, or their descendants, not provided for, shall be deemed to die intestate; and such child or children, or their descendants, shall be entitled to such proportion of the estate of the testator, real and personal, as if he had died intestate, and the same shall be assigned to them, and all the other heirs, devisees and legatees shall refund their proportional part.”

Sec. 311. “When any of the children of the intestate shall have received, in his lifetime, any real or personal estate, by way of advancement, shall choose to come into partition with the other par-ceners, such advancement shall be brought into hotchpot with the estate descended.”

*1203 Respondents, on the other hand, say that the doctrine of bringing advancements into hotchpot is purely statutory; that under the terms of the statute governing advancements in this State, Section 311, the doctrine is without application except in cases of intestacy; and that where, as in this ease, the deceased actually ‘disposed of his entire estate by will the right of pretermitted descendants to participate in the estate, as provided in Section 525, is limited to the estate of which the decedent died seized unaffected by any gifts made during his lifetime to beneficiaries named in the will.

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Bluebook (online)
56 S.W.2d 783, 331 Mo. 1198, 88 A.L.R. 369, 1932 Mo. LEXIS 456, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gibson-ex-rel-doerner-v-johnson-mo-1932.