Stevenson v. Stevenson

130 N.E. 771, 297 Ill. 338
CourtIllinois Supreme Court
DecidedApril 21, 1921
DocketNo. 13207
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 130 N.E. 771 (Stevenson v. Stevenson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Illinois Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stevenson v. Stevenson, 130 N.E. 771, 297 Ill. 338 (Ill. 1921).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Duncan

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is the second appeal that has been prosecuted in this case to this court. On the first appeal clause 11 of the will of John Stevenson was construed as the circuit court construed it and the cause was remanded for a new trial on the other issues in the case. Our former decision contains a full statement of the facts and issues in the case. (Stevenson v. Stevenson, 285 Ill. 486.) The issues on this appeal as to 440 acres of land are the same as in the former appeal. This case is now to be considered on the facts and issues that were heretofore presented and the additional facts proved in the second trial.

As the cause was- remanded by this court for a new trial except as to the issues as to clause 11 of the will, this appeal is to be considered on the remaining issues in the same manner as if no former appeal had been prosecuted, except as to questions of law heretofore settled by this court. The questions of law so settled are binding in this appeal on all the parties. (Newberry v. Blatchford, 106 Ill. 584; In re Estate of Maher, 204 id. 25; Hoffman v. Stephens, 269 id. 376; People v. Union Trust Co. 280 id. 170.) The question for consideration in this appeal is whether all of the evidence now in the record, construed according to the rules of law heretofore announced in our former decision, sustains the decree of the lower court awarding partition of the 440 acres of land of the testator as intestate property.

The fourth clause of testator’s will devises to Ralph Stevenson certain described land in the following language:

“Fourth—I give, devise and bequeath unto my son Ralph Stevenson the east half (}4) of the north half (*4) of the east half (%) of the southeast quarter (j4) of section eight (8), and the east half ($4) of the east half (%) of the southwest quarter (}i) of said section eight (8), and a strip of land ten (10) feet in width and one hundred and sixty (160) rods in length, including the hedge fence, off the west side of the west half (}4),of the southeast quarter (%) of said section eight (8), used for a ditch, (my said son Ralph now being the owner of said tract of land,) less said ten (10) foot strip, all being in township seven (7), north of the base line, and range six (6), west of the fourth principal meridian, situated in the county of Hancock, in the State of Illinois.”

Additional evidence was introduced for the purpose of establishing more clearly that the testator did not own the land specifically described in his will, or any land, in section 8, township 7, north, range 6, west of the fourth principal meridian. The former decision (page 492) conceded this fact. Therefore this evidence could not change the judgment of this court. Further evidence was introduced to the effect that the testator did own land in section 8, township 6, north, range 7, west, which adjoined a hedge fence, and a ten-foot strip west of the hedge fence used for a ditch, being the west ten feet of the west half of the southeast quarter of section 8, township 6, north, range 7, west of the fourth principal meridian. Ralph Stevenson owned only the south half of the west half of the southeast quarter of the section, but the reference to the hedge and ditch and to his land .was sufficient to identify the ten-foot strip described in the will, as it was further shown that he owned no land in section 8, township 7, north, range 6, west of the fourth principal meridian, but did own land similarly described in section 8, township 6, north, range 7, west of the fourth principal meridian, by using the rule of law laid down by this court in the former opinion of discarding from this clause of the will all false description and considering it as no part of the will and not to be read as any part of the description of the land. We also think that with the new evidence considered, the fourth clause of the will is a sufficient description of all the land therein devised when we consider all the language properly belonging to this clause to correctly interpret it. In other words, after discarding the false description there remains sufficient language in the clause to correctly describe land of the testator in that clause when we consider the additional oral evidence aforesaid. The oral evidence establishes the fact that there was a latent ambiguity in this clause and that the land is described in the fourth clause by a correct description by which thé land may be located,—that is to say, it properly describes the ten-foot strip so it can be definitely located. With this strip identified, the language in the fourth clause, by the use of the words “said section 8” in describing the ten-foot strip, shows clearly that the other 60 acres of land therein devised is in the same section 8 as is the ten-foot strip, which the oral evidence shows is in section 8, township 6, north, range 7, west, etc.

It is to be noted that in this interpretation of clause 4 of the will we do not read into the clause in the description of the 60-acre tract willed to Ralph Stevenson the words “township 6, north, range 7, west,” in lieu of the words therein found, “township 7, north, range 6, west,” but simply discard from this clause of the will all reference to township and range, and reading the clause with such elimination find that it sufficiently describes the land so that it may be located by considering oral evidence, which is in all such cases admissible for that purpose. Where there is a latent ambiguity found in a will, that fact, alone, is not sufficient to authorize the interpretation of the will as being sufficient to pass the title to a devise of realty. In addition to proving by oral testimony that there is, in fact, a latent ambiguity by reason of a false description of the land, it must further appear that after discarding the false description there are left in the will sufficient words of description by which, alone, the land may be identified and located without adding to the description any words' not authorized by the will itself. To allow the addition of such words would simply be to permit the reformation of a will, which in no case is admissible under the law of this State.

Counsel in their brief correctly quote section 819 from Page on Wills, which treats of latent ambiguities in this language: “Where testator describes the property devised by township, range, section and quarter section but does not locate it in the correct section or range, or the like, the weight of authority is that extrinsic evidence is admissible to show exactly what real estate testator owned. Under this view, if he owns any real estate which corresponds in part to the description in the will the court will reject the incorrect part of the description and will pass the realty conveyed b)^ the correct description. This subject has already been discussed in detail.” It will be noted that the author in a note to these quoted words refers back to section 487, where he gives the rule fully as to when such description with the false words eliminated will pass and when it will not pass the title by the devise. This latter section is the same section quoted from Page in our former decision, in which he lays down this positive rule: “Practically all the courts agree that if, after the false description or part of a description is discarded, there remains in the devise language sufficiently full and accurate to identify the subject of the gift with sufficient certainty the property there identified will pass.

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Bluebook (online)
130 N.E. 771, 297 Ill. 338, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stevenson-v-stevenson-ill-1921.