In re Estate of Massey

FISHER, P.J.Ch.

The simply stated, yet deeply, perplexing issue raised involves a bequest in a Will which directed that one-third of the residue should pass “to my niece, DIANE HALL and/or Grandniece, CARLY HALL.” Beyond the shadow of any doubt, the use of the phrase “and/or” in that setting is utterly ambiguous and convolutes the ascertainment of the decedent’s intent.

Indeed, the use of “and/or”, notwithstanding its setting, has been roundly criticized — and deservedly so. In Employers’ Mut. Liability Ins. Co. v. Tollefsen, 219 Wis. 434, 263 N.W. 376, 377 (Wis.1935), it was said:

We are…