In re the Estate of Percival

10 Mills Surr. 134, 79 Misc. 567, 141 N.Y.S. 180
CourtNew York Surrogate's Court
DecidedFebruary 15, 1913
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 10 Mills Surr. 134 (In re the Estate of Percival) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Surrogate's 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 Percival, 10 Mills Surr. 134, 79 Misc. 567, 141 N.Y.S. 180 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1913).

Opinion

Sexton, S.

On September 30, 1909, William G. Percival died at Camden, N. Y., leaving a will in which he named Florence A. West as executrix, and which was probated on May 31, 1910. On December 18, 1911, said executrix filed her account, and on February 28, 1912, Louise A. Timian, Clayton A. Timian and Grace Mann, legatees under said will, filed objections thereto, challenging many items of the account of which only the following remain undecided:

1. The mortgage of $1,800 due from Florence A. West to the estate of William G. Percival, deceased.

2. The item of $1,024 erroneously and unlawfully paid by Florence A. West as executrix of the estate of William G. Percival, deceased.

3. The bill of Ormetta Percival for services alleged to have been rendered by her as a nurse in attending Caroline S. Percival, deceased.

4. The bill of Davies, Johnson & Wilkinson for services alleged to have been rendered to Florence A. West, as executrix of the estate of William G. Percival, deceased.

5. The indebtedness of Isaac D. West to William G. Percival, .deceased, amounting to $50 or $52, which did not appear either in the inventory or in the account filed by the executrix.

6. Ademption of legacies.

These contested items will be considered in the order named.

It seems that on April 4, 1893, the deceased deeded to his daughter Florence A. West a house and lot in Camden, N. Y., [137]*137and took back from her a mortgage for the entire purchase price in the amount of $1,800, which was never recorded, but delivered to and found among the effects of the deceased. Some payments were made on this mortgage.

The claim of said executor to said mortgage is based principally upon the evidence of her husband, Isaac D. West, from which it appears that in March, 1894, he bought stock from the deceased in the Camden Water Wheel Works, a domestic business corporation, amounting to a third interest, and gave a note for $6,666.66, with ten shares of said stock as collateral, amounting to $1,000. On May 6, 1905, the deceased and West met for a settlement, a check was given by West to deceased for $2,500, which paid the balance of said note except $50, for which a new note was given. At said meeting it was found that payments in the amount of $400 made by West had not been credited on said note, nor on said $1,800 mortgage. West said: “ Did you endorse those on that mortgage? ” He said: “ No, I don’t known as I have, but I will.” West said: “ That must reduce that mortgage to about $1,000 * * You ought to give that to Florence.” “ Well,” he said, “ if you will give her a thousand dollars of that Water Wheel stock, I will do it,” and West said: “I will do it.” He said: “All right,” and I had it transferred to him.” He said: “ I have transferred it to her.”

The stock in question was then West’s and the deceased had been holding it as collateral to the note.

Exhibits H and I are two certificates of stock in Camden Water Wheel Works, five shares each of $100 a share. On the date of the alleged agreement between West and the deceased, May 6, 1905, each of said shares, which had been issued to West April 10, 1894, was absolutely assigned by West to said deceased, W. G. Percival, in West’s handwriting, and said assignment was witnessed by C. A. Timian, one of the contestants. [138]*138On the same day in the writing of attorney, George F. Morse, each of said certificates of stock was absolutely assigned to Florence A. West by said W. G. Percival, deceased.

Said mortgage was not produced or then turned over as agreed, but was found among the effects of the deceased with an endorsement of ten dollars made in the handwriting of deceased under date of April 9, 1908. West testified that he never asked for the mortgage and said he often wondered why he didn’t.

This mortgage was produced and listed with other assets of the estate without the knowledge of Mrs. West, but was not included in the inventory by Mrs. West, the executrix and claimant.

Mrs. West knew about the said stock having been assigned to her by her father and since his death she had always claimed said mortgage.

As bearing upon the question as to whether her father and husband entered into the agreement for her benefit, testified to by her husband, we have the evidence of a disinterested witness, Vianna Whitford, who knew the deceased for fifty years.

She gave a conversation with the deceased held a short time before his death in which he said: “ I don’t want to live if I can’t get well. I have been arranging my business and I have given the girls their homes, and I have given Cíate the shirt factory.”

February 19, 1907, the deceased deeded to his daughter, a contestant, Louise A. Timian, a house and lot on Main street in Camden. This deed confirms what deceased said to Mrs. Whit-ford as to one of his two daughters; but the expression, I have given the girls their homes,” has no force or meaning except upon the assumption that he had cleared Florence’s home in his agreement with her husband.

There is no evidence, nor presumption against this view, be[139]*139cause Florence was his favorite daughter. If West did not pay the deceased $2,500 by check May 6, 1905, the day the stock was assigned to Mrs. West, that fact could have been shown by the records of the bank on which the check was drawn. Seemingly, deceased, to make sure that his favorite daughter should have West’s stock held by him as collateral, required West to assign it to him instead of trusting West to assign it direct to her. On the mortgage in question there is an endorsement of ten dollars in handwriting of deceased under date of April 8, 1908.

It is urged that said endorsement furnishes strong evidence that the deceased never agreed, as West testified, to give Florence the mortgage. At most said endorsement is a declaration of deceased in his own favor and is hearsay, and, while received without objection, I do not consider it as at all controlling, for the reason that the deceased at the time of said endorsement had several interest bearing securities, on any of which said ten dollars might have been paid, and in view of the fact that West positively denies having made said payment to deceased on account of any matter. It is my duty to find that the deceased made a mistake when he made the ten dollar record on the mortgage, Exhibit 3A, as he was a sickly old man, rather than to find perjury on the part of West, who is a respectable business man, and worthy of credence, so far as the record shows.

I hold that the agreement testified to by West was made between him and deceased. West kept his part of it by assigning his stock so that title passed to Florence. The deceased never actually carried out his part of the agreement by satisfying the mortgage or by delivering it to his daughter Florence.

Can such an agreement be enforced? Was there any consideration therefor?

It could have been enforced against deceased in his lifetime [140]*140and can be against his estate, and there was sufficient consideration therefor. The relation of husband and wife has been twice recognized in this state as furnishing a sufficient consideration for supporting a covenant in the wife’s favor of the character under consideration. Todd v. Weber, 95 N. Y. 187; Buchanan v. Tilden, 158 id. 100.

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Bluebook (online)
10 Mills Surr. 134, 79 Misc. 567, 141 N.Y.S. 180, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-estate-of-percival-nysurct-1913.