“Under those circumstances, inasmuch as there is no will admitted to probate, the effect would be the same as though Mr. Harlow Milbers had died intestate, except as to the ten thousand dollar bequest to Josephine Dell — which is the only specific bequest for a fixed amount contained on the second page.”
“And Christopher would get all the property except that ten thousand?”
“If he is the sole surviving relative and, therefore, the only heir at law, yes.”
“And Nettie Cranning, Eva Hanberry, and Paul Hanberry wouldn’t get a nickel?”
“No.”
“Not even if they can prove that that page of the will giving them everything is absolutely genuine?”
“That isn’t the question, Mrs. Cool. By the second page of that will, they are given not a specific amount, but each is given an undivided one-third interest in the property passing by the residuary clause. It isn’t as though they were given, for example, ten thousand dollars apiece. They are given the residue of the estate. Unless the court can determine how much of the estate was specifically mentioned in other bequests on the first page, the court can’t determine the intention of the testator as to the amount of the residue. The testator might have given away half a million in the first page — or only one dollar.”
Bertha Cool pushed back her chair and got to her feet. “That’s the law?” she asked.
“That’s my opinion, or rather, it’s my interpretation of the law,” Doolittle said. “It’s an interesting point. There could be a very nice lawsuit over it.”
“Well,” Bertha told him, “something may come of this. If it does, I’ll see that you get the business.”