Roberts's Estate

2 Pa. D. & C. 347, 1922 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 279
CourtPennsylvania Orphans' Court, Philadelphia County
DecidedAugust 7, 1922
DocketNo. 290
StatusPublished

This text of 2 Pa. D. & C. 347 (Roberts's Estate) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Orphans' Court, Philadelphia County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Roberts's Estate, 2 Pa. D. & C. 347, 1922 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 279 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1922).

Opinion

Gest, J.,

Edward Roberts, Jr., died on Aug. 12, 1902, leaving a will, by the sixth paragraph of which he devised and bequeathed his residuary estate, real and personal, to the Philadelphia Trust Company in trust, as to one-third part thereof, to invest and keep the same invested and to pay over the net income to his wife, Martha P. Roberts, for the term of her life, and upon her death to hold the said third part of his residury estate in trust for his children or the issue thereof in such proportions and for such uses and estates, etc., as his wife, Martha P. Roberts, should by any last will or testament or writing in the nature thereof direct, limit and appoint, and in default of such direction, limitation, etc., to hold the same upon the same trusts as are set forth in regard to the remaining two-thirds of his residuary estate. Respecting the said two-thirds parts and the one-third part thereof devised in trust for his wife upon her death without having exercised her power of appointment, he directed his trustee to hold the same in trust, to divide the same into five equal parts or shares, as to which he declared trusts in favor of his five children, Edward Roberts, 3rd, J. R. Evans Roberts, Clarence H. Roberts, Agnes P. Roberts and Edith Roberts. As to the share devised in trust for J. R. Evans Roberts, he provided that the same should be held in trust to apply the income to the support and maintenance of his son, J. R. Evans Roberts, [348]*348for the term of his natural life, or, at their option, to pay the same into the proper hands of the said J. R. Evans Roberts in quarterly portions, so that the same should be applied solely for his support and maintenance and not in any way or manner liable for any debts, contracts or engagements of the said J. R. Evans Roberts, etc.; and upon the decease of said son, the testator provided, as respects the corpus of the share so devised in trust for him for life, “to hold the same in trust for the children of my said son or the issue of such children, in such proportions and for such uses and estates and upon such limitations as he my said son J. R. Evans Roberts shall by any last Will or Testament or writing in the nature thereof direct, limit and appoint; and in default of such direction, limitation or appointment, then to hold the same In trust for all and every the child and children which my said son may leave him surviving and the issue of any who may then be dead leaving such issue, their several and respective Heirs, Executors, Administrators, the issue of any deceased child or children to take however and only receive such part and share thereof as his, her or their deceased parent or parents would have had and taken had he, she or they been then living. And in case my said son shall die without leaving any child or children or issue of such living at the time of his death, then To hold the same In trust for such person or persons and for such estate and estates as he my said son by any last Will and Testament or writing in the nature thereof shall direct, limit and appoint: Provided that if my said son shall die without leaving any child or children or issue of such living at the time of his decease and without having made any direction or appointment under the power above given to him, then I will and direct that my said Trustees shall hold the said corpus of the share so devised in trust for him for life In trust for the rest of my children during their lives in equal shares as herein provided in reference to the shares of my residuary estate herein devised in trust for them.”

The trusts for the other sons are similar in their provisions, as are those for the two daughters, except that the power of testamentary appointment given to them is restricted to their children and issue.

And by the first codicil to his will, bearing date Jan. 12, 1884, the testator provided as follows: “I will and direct that each of my sons Edward Roberts, J. R. Evans Roberts and Clarence H. Roberts shall have full power and authority by any last Will and Testament or writing in the nature thereof to limit and appoint a portion (not exceeding one-third) of the income of the trust estate held in trust for him under the provisions of the said foregoing last Will and Testament to his wife whom he may leave him surviving for and during the term of her natural life. And I ratify and confirm my said will in all other respects.”

Clarence H. Roberts, one of the sons of the testator, died intestate, unmarried and without issue, on June 8, 1889, before his father, the testator, so that his share, under the terms of the will, became part of the other shares given in trust for the other four children, and the estate so became divisible in fourths instead of fifths, as appears from the adjudication of Ferguson, J., upon the account of the executors Oct. 23, 1903. Martha P. Roberts, the widow of testator, died on July 30, 1911, intestate, and, consequently, her power of appointment over one-third of the residuary estate was not exercised.

This account is filed by reason of the death of J. R. Evans Roberts on April 25, 1922, leaving a widow, Ethel Tiers Roberts, but no issue; and the death of Edith R. Disston on May 20, 1922, leaving a husband, Henry Disston, but no issue. The will of J. R. Evans Roberts, dated Oct. 16, 1911, in the fourth clause, provided as follows:

[349]*349“Inasmuch as my father, Edward Roberts, Junior, did ¡in and by his last Will and Testament create a trust, the income of a portion of which he directed should be applied to my support during my life, and as he further provided that at my death I might, by my last Will and Testament or writing in the nature thereof, direct, limit and appoint the manner in which my share of his estate should be distributed, I hereby, availing myself of that privilege, direct, limit and appoint that from the time of my death until the death of my said wife, Ethel Tiers Roberts, if she survive me, said trust shall continue in the hands of the Trustee named by my father and the income that would have been paid to me had I lived be distributed as follows:

“If I am survived by my said wife and no issue of mine, I direct that she receive all of the said income during the full term of her life.
“If I am survived by my said wife and a child or children of mine or issue of such deceased child or children, I direct that one-third of said income be paid to my said wife and two-thirds to such child or children or issue of such deceased child or children per stirpes and not per capita. In the event of the subsequent death of all of my descendants prior to the death of my said wife, she to receive the entire income until her death.
“Upon the death of my said wife, if a minor child or children of mine survive, I direct that the trust be continued until the youngest of my children reaches the age of twenty-one years, the whole income of my share being in the interim distributed among my descendants per stirpes and not per capita.
“Upon the termination of the trust, as above extended, if issue of mine survive, I direct that the corpus of my share of my father’s estate be distributed among such issue then surviving, share and share alike, per stirpes and not per capita.
“Upon the death of my said wife, if no child or children of mine or issue of such deceased child or children survive, I direct that the corpus of my share of my father’s estate be immediately distributed as follows:

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Bluebook (online)
2 Pa. D. & C. 347, 1922 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 279, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robertss-estate-paorphctphilad-1922.