Bergland v. Owen
Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Hearing on an appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia in an action to recover an interest in real estate.
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Hearing on an appeal by the defendant from a judgment of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia in an action to recover an interest in real estate. The Court in the opinion stated the facts as follows: This appeal involves the title to a piece of real estate of which Robert Earl was the owner in fee simple in 1866. He then made a will, which devised the property unto Solomon Stover in trust for his daughter, Mary Hilbus, “to be for the sole use, benefit, and behoof of her, the said Mrs. Mary Hilbus, for and during the term of her natural life, free from any control or interest, claim…
1Opinion of the CourtChief Justice Smytii
It must be conceded that the will upon its face discloses a clear intention upon the part of the father to give to his daughter, Mrs. Hilbus, only a life estate, and that upon her death the legal title should pass to her heirs, who he believed would be hpr children. It is therefore our duty to respect and enforce this intention unless we are prevented from doing so by some inflexible rule of law.
Appellant says that the trust created was a passive one, and that under the Statute of Uses, 27 Hen. VIII. chap. 10, it was executed in Mrs. Hilbus and the legal title thereby vested in her. On this…
2Cases cited16 opinions
- Greene v. . GreeneNew York Court of Appeals · 1891
- Rumsey v. New York & New England R. R.New York Court of Appeals · 1892
- Minnesota Co. v. National Co.Supreme Court of the United States · 1866
- Ware v. RichardsonCourt of Appeals of Maryland · 1853
- Daniel v. WhartenbySupreme Court of the United States · 1873
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