ANCIENT WILL

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 208, 27 April 1932, Page 3

ANCIENT WILL

INTERESTING CASE BEFORE * DUNEDIN SUPREME COURT. FORTY-SEVEN YEARS OLD. DUNEDIN, April 22. A will, made hy a resident of Leith Valley 47 years ago was submitted to his Honour Mr. Justiee Kennedy in the Dunedin Supreme Court for interpretat'.on. It came'before the court in the form of an originating summons in re Archibald Fraser, deceased. It was stated by counsel for the plaintiff that the court was asked to decide a question which arose from the will of Archibald Fraser, who died on January 15, 1885. It was a homemade will, and a very short one. The estate was left to the widow, and the landed property was to he divided amongst the family at her death. Probate of the will was granted on January 27, 1885, to the widow, who, after marrying again, died in 1931, , letter s of administration in the estate being granted to Lawrence Fraser, one of the sons, who was the plaintiff on August 14, 1931. Thei'e were three sons and two daughters, both of the i daughters, who left children, predei ceasing their mother. The estate was how worth approxlmately £800. A ' question arose in connection with the words "at her death." If those words qualified the word "family," then they defined the beneficiaries. In that case the children who did not survive the widow would not have acquired an interest and the effect would be to make the estate divisable in three parts amongst the surviving sons. The other possible reading seemed to be that the words "at her death" merely indicated the point of time at which the division was to be made. If that were so the estate would be devisable into five shares. After hearing argument by counsel representing the different parties, H's Honour reserved decision.