209 P. 356 | Cal. | 1922
This appeal is from an order of the superior court denying the petition of one Achsa J. Connick to be appointed administratrix of the estate of Catherine Matilda Connick, deceased, and granting the petition of Henry A. Hansen, public administrator of the county of Humboldt, to be appointed administrator of said estate. The facts as shown by the record are undisputed and are briefly these: Catherine Matilda Connick died on December 24, 1905, leaving as her sole heir at law her son, Amos H. Connick. On November 9, 1920, Amos H. Connick, being himself competent to be appointed administrator of his mother's estate, executed a request to the court in writing for the appointment of H.G. Gross, C.H. Palmtag and Achsa J. Connick to act as administrators of said estate, waiving therein his own right to act as such administrator. On April 6, 1921, said Amos H. Connick died. Thereafter H.G. Gross and C.H. Palmtag each executed their waiver in writing of their right to administer said estate under said requested appointment, and requested the court to appoint Achsa J. Connick as the sole administratrix of the estate of said Catherine Matilda Connick, deceased. On April 9, 1921, said Achsa J. Connick filed her petition to be appointed administratrix of said estate, alleging therein that she was a niece of said Catherine Matilda Connick, deceased, and as such was entitled to letters of administration therein. On April 14, 1921, Henry A. Hansen, public administrator *500 of the county in which the proceedings for the administration of said estate were pending, filed his written opposition to the petition of said Achsa J. Connick for letters of administration of said estate, alleging that said Achsa J. Connick was not an heir of said deceased, and that there was no heir of said deceased now residing in the state of California. He, therefore, made application to be appointed the administrator of said estate as the only person qualified to become such, and prayed that his said application be granted and that letters of administration be issued to him. These opposing petitions were set for hearing for April 24, 1921, but on that day Achsa J. Connick obtained an order continuing the hearing thereon until May 2, 1921. On April 29, 1921, said Achsa J. Connick for the first time filed the document wherein Amos H. Connick requested the court to appoint her as the administratrix of said estate and had waived his own right to administer thereon. On May 2, 1921, the hearing upon both petitions came on before the court, upon and after which the order was made denying the petition of Achsa J. Connick to be appointed administratrix of said estate, and granting the petition of said Henry A. Hansen for letters of administration therein. It is from this order that Achsa J. Connick has taken and prosecutes this appeal.
[1] The sole question presented upon this appeal is as to the prior right of the appellant to be appointed administratrix of said estate; she insists that she had that right by virtue of the written request for her appointment executed by Amos H. Connick, the sole heir of said decedent, a short time prior to his death. She insists that her right to such appointment became absolute upon the death of said Amos H. Connick and was unaffected thereby, and hence that the trial court should have granted her said application. We are unable to agree with this contention. The privilege of seeking appointment as administrator of the estate of a deceased person, which is predicated upon the written request of the surviving husband or wife of the decedent or of such other person as is entitled to administer, is entirely of statutory origin and arises by virtue of sections
Order affirmed.
Waste, J., Myers, J., pro tem., Shaw C. J., Lennon, J., and Lawlor, J., concurred.