153 Misc. 48 | N.Y. Sur. Ct. | 1934
Certain objections have been filed to the account by the daughter of the testator, which involve the enforcibility of an antenuptial agreement made by the testator in 1902 in anticipation of the impending marriage of said daughter. These objections principally involve the effect of the agreement upon the distribution of the estate. The terms of the agreement provided for the payment of an annual allowance of $2,500 during the lifetime of the daughter. In addition, the testator expressly agreed that certain testamentary benefits for the daughter, contained in a prior will, stated to have ■ been executed on July 26, 1897, would remain “ inviolate and unalterable.” The specific clause of the prior will was set forth in the agreement, although the remaining clauses were not set forth in substance or specific language. The specific clause contained in the agreement provided that upon the death of the testator’s wife, the estate should be divided between his children or the issue of deceased children, by representation. This agreement was the subject of an action brought against the decedent in his lifetime, involving the recovery of the annual allowance to his daughter. The judgment therein was for the plaintiff and against the defendant, the testator. The agreement was determined to be valid and enforcible. Upon appeal, the judgment was affirmed by the Appellate Division and the Court of Appeals (DeCicco v. Schweizer, 166 App. Div. 919; affd., 221 N. Y. 431).
The testator left surviving his daughter (the objectant), Blanche Gulinelli, and the children of a deceased son Raymond. If no other events had occurred, therefore, the daughter, under the 1902 agreement, would have been entitled to one-half of the estate outright. I am of the opinion that the affirmance by the Court of Appeals of the judgment of the Supreme Court determined the validity of the agreement not only as to the immediate question involved — the payment of income — but also as an enforcible obligation against the estate.
At the time of the making of the agreement in 1902 the first wife of the testator was living. She died in 1925. In the same year he remarried. In 1928 he executed a new will in which he gave the income of the residuary estate to his second wife, with remainder to his children or their issue. The remainder was contingent and the class of takers was to be determined as of the
Upon the secondary question raised by the general guardian of the children of the deceased son Raymond, who are named as remaindermen of one-half of the residuary trust estate, I hold that they will be entitled, upon the death of the widow, to the entire corpus of the trust which has been made subject to the fife estate of the widow. It was plainly contemplated by the testator in the 1897 will, in the 1902 agreement and in the 1928 will that the ultimate division of his estate should be made in equal parts between his two children, if they survived, or the issue of a child who predeceased him. If the daughter Blanche had died before him, her issue would have taken under the agreement. I have held in the foregoing part of this decision that because of her survival she is presently entitled to one-half of the residuary estate outright. To effectuate the intent of the testator and at the same time harmonize it with the terms of his agreement, the remaining half of the estate should be held in trust for the fife of the widow and upon her death should be paid over to the then surviving issue of the deceased son Raymond. There is a further possibility which may occur — the death of all such issue before the death of the widow. Intestacy might thereby result. That contingency, however, must await the termination of the trust and the ascertainment of the actual events.
Submit decree on notice settling the account accordingly,