Fowler v. Ladd
Supreme Court of New Hampshire
Petition, by the administrator of Martha L. Haines, for advice as to who is entitled to the possession of the property that came to her under the will of her husband James H. Haines. The will is as follows: “First. I give and bequeath all my earthly possessions to my wife, Martha L. Haines, to be used according to her judgment & will.
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Petition, by the administrator of Martha L. Haines, for advice as to who is entitled to the possession of the property that came to her under the will of her husband James H. Haines. The will is as follows: “First. I give and bequeath all my earthly possessions to my wife, Martha L. Haines, to be used according to her judgment & will. Secondly — in case of the death of the said Martha L. Plaines without having' made a will, then the said possessions shall go to Alice C. Ladd, on condition that she provide for her mother Selura H. Ladd.” Transferred without a ruling by Sawyer, J., from the…
1Opinion of the CourtYoung, J.
The question for the court in this case is whether James intended to give his property to Martha or to give her the right to use it and to dispose of it in any way she saw fit but that if she did not dispose of it, it should go to Mrs. Chapman.
As the law is understood in this jurisdiction, the construction of a will is the ascertainment of the testator’s expressed intention, not by the application of the so-called common law rules of construction, Hayward v. Spaulding, 75 N. H. 92, but by reading the words the testator used in the light of the surrounding circumstances, and giving them their…
2Cases cited10 opinions
- Hayward v. SpauldingSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1908
- Jones v. BennettSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1916
- Weston v. Second Orthodox Congregational SocietySupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1915
- Galloway v. BabbSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1914
- Cotton v. FletcherSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1914
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3Cited by2 opinions
- Brierley v. BrierleySupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1923
- Donovan v. SmithSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1923