In re the Estate of Doyle

15 P. 125, 73 Cal. 564, 1887 Cal. LEXIS 716
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 7, 1887
DocketNo. 9710
StatusPublished
Cited by35 cases

This text of 15 P. 125 (In re the Estate of Doyle) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re the Estate of Doyle, 15 P. 125, 73 Cal. 564, 1887 Cal. LEXIS 716 (Cal. 1887).

Opinions

McKinstby, J.

— A petition for the admission to probate of an instrument as the last will and testament of Michael Doyle, deceased, was presented to the Superior Court by William R. Doyle, named as executor therein.

Richard Doyle, brother of deceased, filed his written opposition to the probate, stating, as ground of opposition, that " the deceased did not make, sign, publish, or declare, as his last will,” the instrument propounded.

No demurrer was interposed to the written opposition, nor was any written answer thereto filed or served.

[566]*566The Superior Court tried “ the contest,” and decided and adjudged that the instrument offered for probate was the last will and testament of said Michael, deceased; that it was executed in all respects as required by law; that the testator, at the time of its execution, was of sound and disposing mind, and not acting under any undue influence, fraud, or duress; and the court ordered # that the will be admitted to probate.

No appeal was taken from the judgment or order admitting the will to probate. The contestant, Richard Doyle, moved for a new trial of the contest, and has appealed from an order denying his motion.

Section 1312 of the Code of Civil Procedure provides, in effect, that when an opposition is filed and served, the petitioner for probate, or others interested in the estate, may demur to the opposition, or may answer the contestant’s grounds, traversing the same, etc.; and that any issue of fact thus raised must, if requested by either party in writing, be tried by jury; otherwise, by the court.

The petition filed by proponent was sufficient, and' under its averments he would have been authorized to prove (had there been no contest) that the deceased did make, sign, publish, and declare, as his last will,” the instrument offered. (Code Civ. Proc., sec. 1308.) The petition, therefore, is to have the same effect as if it had expressly averred that the will offered was made, signed, and published as the last will of the deceased.

There was, then, in the petition, an allegation that the deceased did, and in the opposition an allegation that deceased did not make, sign, and publish the instrument as his last will.

Appellant claims that a new trial should have been granted by the Superior Court, because its decision was’ “ against law,” within the meaning of section 656 of the Code of Civil-Procedure; that the failure of petitioner to’ deny, by written answer, the allegation of the written opposition was an admission that the allegation was-[567]*567true. (Code Civ. Proc., sec. 1312.) It is insisted that the decision of the Superior Court, that the deceased did “ make, sign, publish,” etc., being contrary to proponent’s admission that deceased did not sign, etc., was “ against law.”

As we have seen, a direct issue was made by the averment in the petition that the will was executed and published as prescribed by law, and the averment in the opposition that it was not so executed or published. It may be doubted whether the section 1312, which provides that an answer “may” be made to the written opposition, requires such answer when the opposition merely denies an averment implied in every sufficient petition for the probate of a will.

It may also be very seriously doubted whether the Superior Court could base a decision against the beneficiaries under the will upon the failure of the executor to deny that a will, whereby he had been appointed executor (and which he had asked to have admitted to probate upon petition, expressly or impliedly averring that it was duly executed and published), was not duly made and published.

But we do not find it necessary to rest the decision of this appeal upon the determination of the question suggested by either of such doubts.

1. The bill of exceptions included in the transcript shows that on a certain day, “no objection being made, the-court proceeded to try said contest on probate of said will; E. J. Hutchinson, Esq., appearing for Richard Doyle, the contestant and plaintiff; H. C. Newhall, Esq., appearing for William R. Doyle, petitioner and defendant; and J. Howard Smith appearing for absent heirs; and testimony having been offered in support of said will, and on the part of contestant in opposition thereto, and the court being satisfied from said testimony that said will should be admitted to probate, the court thereupon made its order admitting the said will to probate.”

[568]*568It'appears from the bill that at the trial of the contest, the course which we believe to be the usual course, and which is one to which the contestant certainly could not object, was pursued,—that is, the petitioner made the prima facie proof that the will was executed in the manner prescribed by law, and that testator was of sound mind,—and the contestant then introduced evidence in support of his ground of opposition to the probate. No objection was made by contestant to testimony in support of the petition for probate; and contestant himself, treating the case as if the averment in his opposition were sufficiently denied by the pleading on the part of the petitioner, offered and put in testimony in support of his written grounds of opposition. ■ For aught that appears, the petitioner then introduced evidence to meet that given on behalf of contestant. Upon the testimony so given on behalf of the petitioner and contestant respectively, the Superior Court decided the contest. If the appellant is right in his contention, no evidence was admissible upon the part of the petitioner. A party cannot for the first time in this court object on any ground to evidence which was introduced by the adverse party at the trial in the court below without objection being made thereto. (Scott v. Sierra Lumber Co., 67 Cal. 75; Bliss v. Ellsworth, 36 Cal. 300.) Where evidence is not objected to in the court below, because not admissible under the averment of a pleading, it is too late to raise the objection in the Supreme Court. (Scott v. Sierra Lumber Co., supra; Hutchings v. Castle, 48 Cal. 152; Henry v. Southern Pacific R. R. Co., 50 Cal. 176.)

The contestant not only made no objection to the testimony offered on behalf of the petitioner, but introduced evidence in support of the allegations in his written opposition. He did not move for judgment on the pleadings, nor did he in any way call the attention of the court to what is now called the admission by petitioner of everything charged in the opposition. Sec[569]*569tion 1312 of the Code of Civil Procedure does not, except by inference, limit the time within which the written opposition may be answered; but if it must be answered within ten days, here the contest was tried by mutual assent (“ without objection ”) the day after the written opposition was filed. Had the objection now urged been made by contestant, there can be no doubt, if it was necessary to make an issue, the court would have allowed the petitioner to file an answer forthwith, or have given him time to file an answer denying the allegations of the written opposition. This would accord with the view expressed in Stringer v. Davis, 30 Cal. 318; Clark v. Phoenix Ins. Co., 36 Cal. 175, and Scott v. Sierra Co., supra.

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Bluebook (online)
15 P. 125, 73 Cal. 564, 1887 Cal. LEXIS 716, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-estate-of-doyle-cal-1887.