Dei Cas v. Mayfield

Dupont, C.P.J.

This appeal1 arises out of a dispute over the construction of the will of William Shaw, the father of both the plaintiff and the named defendant.2 The issue to be decided is whether the language of the will gave the wife of the testator a life estate or a fee simple absolute estate in certain realty. The trial court concluded, in its granting of the defendant’s motion for summary judgment, that the widow was devised a life estate.

*107William Shaw executed a will in 1938 and died in 1944. In 1938, his daughters, who are parties in the present action, were minors. His wife, Mary Shaw,…