Pinchback Ex Rel. Daugherty v. Pinchback

352 S.W.2d 151, 1961 Tex. App. LEXIS 2037
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 22, 1961
Docket3918
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 352 S.W.2d 151 (Pinchback Ex Rel. Daugherty v. Pinchback) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pinchback Ex Rel. Daugherty v. Pinchback, 352 S.W.2d 151, 1961 Tex. App. LEXIS 2037 (Tex. Ct. App. 1961).

Opinion

McDONALD, Chief Justice.

This is a will contest filed by Patricia Pinchback, as plaintiff, contesting the will of her father William P. Pinchback, deceased, on the grounds: 1) That deceased testator did not have testamentary capacity to make a will; 2) That testator was unduly influenced by Mary F. Pinchback, Howard P. Castle, R. T. Pinchback, or J. S. Pinchback.

The record reflects that the deceased William P. Pinchback’s first wife died in September 1955. That one child, the plaintiff herein, was born of this marriage; that the deceased loved his daughter very much; that he had all of his insurance ($20,000) payable to her, and executed a will leaving her all of his property. It is further reflected that plaintiff was vested remainder as a child of William P. Pinchback, of her grandmother’s will, to a ⅛ interest in the grandmother’s estate, after the death of her father who received a life estate in such ¼ interest.

In October 1956 William P. Pinchback married Mary F. Pinchback, defendant herein. He thereafter instituted adoption proceedings in July 1957, adopted 2 additional children; and thereafter had the beneficiary of his insurance changed from plaintiff to his 2nd wife for a ½, and the other y/2 to be divided between plaintiff and the 2 adopted children. In September 1957 William P. Pinchback executed a will, revoking his prior will, and leaving everything to his second wife, defendant herein. In latter 1957 William P. Pinchback became ill and was operated on for a lung cancer. In August 1958 he was readmitted to the hospital with a serious condition of cancer.

On 13 September 1958 while in the hospital, deceased executed a new w;ll, (similar to the September 1957 will), and again leaving everything to his second wife. He died on 7 November 1958 of the cancer.

Plaintiff’s suit alleges that the 13 September 1958 will was executed when deceased was without testamentary capacity, and/or as the result of undue influence and impor-tunities by the second wife (or on behalf of' the 2nd wife), at a time when the testator was seriously ill, in pain and shock, and under the administration of drugs used in-treatment of his cancer. Plaintiff further alleged that the will was procured by fraud and/or mistake; and that the testator-thought that plaintiff, his natural daughter,, was taken care of in that she would take a full ¼ undivided remainder interest in his mother’s estate under the provisions of her will.

Trial was to a jury which, in answer to-special issues, found: 1) William P. Pinch-back was of sound mind at the time he executed the will; 2) That the will was- *153 not procured through undue influence of Mary F. Pinchback (the 2nd wife); 3) That the will was not procured through undue influence of Howard P. Castle, R. T. Pinchback, Jr. or J. S. Pinchback. The Trial Court entered judgment on the foregoing verdict that plaintiff take nothing.

Plaintiff appeals on 53 points, which present the following principal contentions:

1) The Trial Court erred in refusing to give plaintiff’s requested charge concerning Article 3716 to the jury.

2) The Trial Court erred in permitting Mary F. Pinchback to testify to various conversations which she had with the deceased.

3) The Trial Court erred in permitting the witnesses Goodwin, Nan Oxford, and J. S. Pinchback to testify that the deceased was of sound mind at the time of the execution of the will.

4) The Trial Court erred in permitting Mary F. Pinchback and Lynn Ross to testify that Judge Langdon told deceased that the 2 adopted children would inherit under the laws of Texas the same as natural children would.

5) The Trial Court erred in permitting the witnesses, Hilla, Isaacs, and Wilson to testify that they never observed anyone trying to pressure deceased to sign the will.

6) The Trial Court erred in permitting the witnesses J. S. Pinchback and W. F. Oxford, Jr. to testify that they had never endeavored to influence the deceased in making a will as to put any provision in it.

7) The Trial Court erred in admitting the testimony of the witness Rosamond Collins as to the relationship which existed between plaintiff and deceased; and in admitting the testimony of the witness Charles Collins as to what he saw and observed in the relation between the Pinchbacks and the 2 adopted children.

8) The Trial Court erred in its definition of “sound mind.”

We revert to plaintiff’s 1st contention: the Trial Court erred in refusing to give plaintiff’s requested charge concerning Article 3716 (the Dead Man’s Statute) as follows: “You are instructed in this case that the contestant Patricia E. Pinchback, is not permitted by law to testify or give evidence before the jury or the court relating to any transaction or conversation, or statement by William P. Pinchback, deceased, over the objection of the proponent Mary F. Pinchback, unless the contestant, Patricia E. Pinchback, is called to testify thereto by the opposite party, proponent, Mary F. Pinchback, et al, or unless the proponent Mary F. Pinchback, waives her obj ection to the admission of such testimony before the court and jury.”

The Trial Court charged the jury as follows: “You are further instructed that in this case Patricia E. Pinchback is not permitted by the law to give evidence relating to any transaction or conversation with, or statement by, William P. Pinchback, deceased, unless the said Patricia E. Pinch-back is called to testify by the opposite party.”

The instruction given by the court was in the exact language of Rule 182a Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, and is a correct instruction. Moreover the requested instruction for all intents and purposes is the same as the instruction actually given. Finally the plaintiff, while requesting a very slightly different instruction, made no objection to the instruction actually given. City of Dallas v. Priolo, 150 Tex. 423, 242 S.W.2d 176. The contention is overruled.

Plaintiff’s 2nd contention is that the Trial Court erred in permitting Mary F. Pinchback, 2nd wife and defendant, over objection, (and in violation of the Dead Man’s Statute), to testify as to various conversations which she had with the deceased. Mary F. Pinchback was permitted to testify that she did not ask the deceased to leave plaintiff out of the will; and that deceased (and Judge Langdon) told her that the 2 adopted children would inherit *154 equally with plaintiff under the grandmother’s will. The record reflects that plaintiff called Mary F. Pinchback as a witness in the probate court, by twice taking her deposition in advance of trial, and called her and recalled her as a witness on the trial, and questioned her about the same matter to which objection is made. The objection was waived. Allen v. Pollard, 109 Tex. 536, 212 S.W. 468. Moreover the testimony relative to the rights of the 2 adopted children under the grandmother’s will is in the record from other sources. The contention is overruled.

Contention 3 complains of the admission of testimony from the witnesses Goodwin, Nan Oxford and J. S. Pinchback that the deceased was of sound mind. The witness Goodwin had known deceased since 1948 and worked with him; Nan Oxford was deceased’s sister; and J. S.

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352 S.W.2d 151, 1961 Tex. App. LEXIS 2037, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pinchback-ex-rel-daugherty-v-pinchback-texapp-1961.