In re Bringhurst

Citations

• 250 Pa. 9
• 95 A. 320

Syllabus

<p>Guardian and ward — Weak-minded persons — Husband and wife —Election to take against will of husband — -Guardian’s petition— Refusal — Judicial discretion.</p> <p>1. Where a widow who has not elected to take against her husband’s will becomes weak in mind, necessitating the submission of the matter of such election to a court of chancery to .act on her behalf, the leaning of the law is toward the will.</p> <p>2. The guardian of a person weak in mind petitioned for leave to take against the will of its ward’s deceased husband. It appeared that the ward had been confined in an asylum before her husband’s death, that the husband gave the residue of his estate in trust to pay one-third of the income therefrom to his widow for life, the remaining two-thirds to his three daughters for life, on the death of his wife the whole net income to his three daughters for life, and directed that upon their deaths respectively, the principal of the share from which the one so dying had received the income should be paid to her child or children then living and the issue of deceased children, but that if any of his daughters should die without leaving children, or issue, the share of the one so dying should increase the trust estates of the survivors. One of the daughters was married and had a minor son, the other two daughters were married and without issue, but each had adopted a child. It appeared that the income which the wife would receive was ample for her comfortable maintenance and that the petition was presented in order that the adopted children of two of the daughters might receive a portion of the estate. Held, the lower court did not err in refusing the petition.</p>