State ex rel. Guye v. Superior Court

Citations

• 54 Wash. 264
• 103 P. 25
• 1909 Wash. LEXIS 981

Syllabus

<p>Executors and Administrators — Letters of Administration— Prerequisites — Intestacy — Jurisdiction — Community . Property. The power to grant letters of administration being purely statutory, intestacy is a necessary prerequisite to the granting of general letters of administration in this state, under Bal. Code, §§ 6141, 6142, authorizing administration upon the estates of intestates and requiring the application to show that the deceased left no will; hence the superior court is without jurisdiction to grant letters of' administration to the wife upon the community property, after appointing executors and admitting to probate the will of her deceased husband, devising and bequeathing his half interest in the community property and his separate estate, and naming his executors.</p> <p>Same — Wills — Husband and Wife — Community Property — Power to Name Executor. Under Bal. Code, §§ 4490 and 4621, making one-half of the community property subject to the testamentary disposition of each spouse, the testator has the power to name the executor to administer the estate, which necessarily carries with it the administration of all community property for such length of time as necessary to pay debts and speedily close the estate.</p> <p>Prohibition- — Adequacy of Remedy at Law — Letters of Administration. Prohibition lies to prevent the threatened issuance of letters of general administration without jurisdiction, since there is no adequate remedy at law.</p>