Phillips's Estate

Citations

• 205 Pa. 504
• 55 A. 210

Syllabus

<p>Wills — Vested and contingent remainders — Contradictory clauses— Intestacy.</p> <p>While there is no doubt that of two contradictory clauses in a will the first must give way, and the last must take effect, yet the two clauses must refer to the same subject-matter, and the last must be clearly inconsistent with the first. If the main provision plainly covers the whole subject, and is defined in terms that exclude all doubt, and the subsidiary provision may by conjecture be made either general or partial, and may be capable by construction either of subverting entirely or of modifying only the original gift, such a subsidiary provision must in the ordinary case be confined to its partial and restricted operation.</p> <p>In the construction of doubtful, inconsistent or contradictory clauses in a will, that construction is favored which avoids an intestacy.</p> <p>'Testator gave his residury estate after the termination of certain life estates to his nephews and nieces “ and the issue of any of them, that may be deceased, living at the time of my death, share and share alike, such issue taking however only their parents’ share and in default of issue, any such share shall be divided among the survivors of them as aforesaid.” By a subsequent clause he directed : “ It is my will and I so direct that no nephew or niece or representative of any such shall have the right to call to account with my executors or trustees until such time as he or she may be entitled to receive in his or her possession the share of the residuary estate, nor shall any estate vest until such time.” Held (1) that the testator in using the word “ vest” in the later clause of his will, used it in the sense of “payable” or “ to vest in possession or take effect in possession,” and not in its technical sense ; (2) that the nephews and nieces took an estate, the title to which vested in them upon the death of the testator ; (3) that the later clause in the will was merely intended to protect his ex