Smith v. Moore

176 So. 2d 868, 278 Ala. 173, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 868
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedMay 27, 1965
Docket5 Div. 811
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 176 So. 2d 868 (Smith v. Moore) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Smith v. Moore, 176 So. 2d 868, 278 Ala. 173, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 868 (Ala. 1965).

Opinion

SIMPSON, Justice.

Wallace L. Griffin, who was approximately 80 years old at the time of his death, died in Lee County leaving a will which devised 100 acres of farm land to his stepdaughter, Robena Moore, the appellee, and an additional 99 acres to his grandson, Lee Isaac Wallace. The appellant, who is the daughter of the decedent and an illegitimate daughter were bequeathed jointly the proceeds of insurance policies. The residuary estate was left to appellee.

The appellant contested the will on two-grounds :

(1) That it had been procured by tire undue influence of the appellee, Robena Moore;

(2) That the will was subsequently revoked by the testator by an instrument in writing.

The appellee, proponent of the will, denied that it was procured by undue influence, but rather contended that the revocation was procured by the undue influence of contestant’s son, Lee Isaac Wallace, or others.

The cause was duly removed from the Probate Court of Lee County to the Circuit Court at law. The case was tried to a jury on October 26, 1964. The jury .re *175 turned a verdict in favor of proponent. The contestant filed a motion for a new trial which was denied. This appeal followed.

The court charged the jury as follows:

“Now, gentlemen of the jury, the court charges you that in this case which you are now or will consider, that the form of this will itself — the form — is proper. The Court further charges you that the revocation is in proper form. So you don’t have to consider that. The form of the will is proper under Alabama law; the form of the revocation is proper under Alabama law. What you have got to determine, gentlemen, is whether or not undue influence was exercised by Robena Moore in the preparation of this will; and then was undue influence exercised by Martha E. Smith, Lee Isaac Wallace, or any other person, in procuring the revocation.
* * * * *
“In other words, gentlemen, every influence, no matter how great, although exercised successfully, is not necessarily undue. An important element must be present. The influence must not only have existed but must have been used and produced a will different from what the testator, if free from influence, would have made. The undue influence which will overturn or defeat a testamentary disposition of property must be of such a character as to overpower the will of the testator and substitute another will in its place. It must amount to controlling mental restraint and coertion destroying the free agency of the testator.
“Now, gentlemen of the jury, you do not have before you the question of testamentary capacity in this case; that is, the question of whether or not this man was of unsound mind. That question is not before you.
* * * * • * *
“As to the will, the contestant, Martha E. Smith, charges that the proponent, Robena Moore, exercised undue influence over her stepfather in the execution of the will. On the other hand, Robena Moore charges that either Martha E. Smith or Lee Isaac Wallace — the same person as Pete Wallace — or some other person exercised undue influence over the old man, Wallace L. Griffin, in procuring the execution of the revocation. * * the existence of a confidential relationship between the testator and the principal or large beneficiary under the will, coupled with activity on the part of the latter in or about the preparation or execution of the will, will raise a presumption of undue influence, and casts upon him the burden of showing that it was not induced by coertion or fraud on his part, directly or indirectly. * * * In other words, gentlemen of the jury, whatever confidential relation exists between the testator and Robena Moore, as far as the will is concerned, or whatever confidential relationship existed between the testator, Wallace L. Griffin, and Martha E. Smith or Lee Isaac Wallace as far as the revocation is concerned, that confidential relationship alone would not raise a presumption of any undue influence on their parts. It would have to go further and show that there was some activity on the part of the person attempting to exercise the undue influence.
* * * * * *
* * * even if you found that the will was the true last will and testament of Wallace Lee Griffin, and you further found that the will had been revoked, then, of course, the revocation would automatically do away with the will. But you can’t stop there, gentlemen, you’ve got to go a step further and ascertain whether or not the revocation was induced or superin *176 duced by the undue influence of Lee Isaac Wallace, the stepson, or Martha E. Smith, the daughter of the deceased.”

At the conclusion of the oral charge, the contestant, appellant, requested that the following written charges be given the jury. The refusal of these charges is assigned as error:

“Charge #1. The Court charges the jury that if you believe the evidence in this case, you must find the issues in the case for the Defendant, Contestant, Martha E. Smith.
“Charge #2. The Court charges the jury that under the evidence in this case, you must find for the Defendant, Contestant, Martha E. Smith.
“Charge #5. The Court charges the jury that there is no evidence in this case of any undue influence over Wallace L. Griffin by Martha E. Smith with respect to the revocation of said Will executed by the said Wallace L. Griffin.
“Charge #6. The Court charges the jury that there is no evidence in this case of any undue influence over Wallace L. Griffin by Isaac Wallace with respect to the revocation of said Will executed by the said Wallace L. Griffin.”

Charges No. 1 and No. 2 amount to affirmative charges in favor of the contestant-appellant. The refusal to give these charges was not error. As we have so often stated, the scintilla rule prevails in this state and a mere spark of evidence or inference to be drawn from any evidence in support of the theory of the case against whom the affirmative charge is sought is sufficient to compel the denial of the affirmative charge. 18A Ala. Digest, Trial, <®^>139(1), et seq. We have read the record and find sufficient evidence on the factual matters to warrant submitting the case to the jury.

The refusal of Charges No. 5 and No. 6 was without error. They cal! upon the court to charge the jury that there is no evidence of a stated fact. It is not error to refuse such charges. Pollard v. Williams, 238 Ala. 391, 191 So. 225; Little v. Sugg, 243 Ala. 196, 8 So.2d 866; Montgomery St. Ry. v. Rice, 142 Ala. 674, 38 So. 857; 18A Ala. Digest, Trial,. ®^194(8).

Appellant next complains that the court erred in giving the following charges at the request of proponent-appellee:

“Charge #2. I charge you, gentlemen of the jury, that a writing in order to be an effective revocation of a Will, must be executed and attested in the same way as a Will itself.
“Charge #10.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

McGimsey v. Gray
260 So. 3d 25 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2018)
Pirtle v. Tucker
960 So. 2d 620 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2006)
Hayes v. Apperson
826 So. 2d 798 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2002)
Ex Parte Henderson
732 So. 2d 295 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1999)
Armstrong v. McGee
579 So. 2d 1310 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1991)
Green v. Meadows
575 So. 2d 544 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1990)
Crump v. Moss
517 So. 2d 609 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1987)
Wall v. Hodges
465 So. 2d 359 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1984)
Reed v. Walters
396 So. 2d 83 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1981)
Cook v. Cook
396 So. 2d 1037 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1981)
Rabon v. Rabon
360 So. 2d 971 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1978)
Crowe v. State
333 So. 2d 902 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama, 1976)
Reed v. Shipp
308 So. 2d 705 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1975)
Michigan Mutual Liability Company v. Madison
220 So. 2d 869 (Alabama Court of Appeals, 1968)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
176 So. 2d 868, 278 Ala. 173, 1965 Ala. LEXIS 868, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-moore-ala-1965.