Allen v. Talley

949 S.W.2d 59 (1997)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Mary wrote a will that gave all her property to her 5 brothers and sisters. By the time Mary died, all of her brothers and sisters had died except for Claude and Lera. Each of the siblings who had died had left surviving children. One of the surviving children, Lewis filed a petition for a declaratory judgment and Lera opposed that petition declaring that Mary had intended that her estate pass to her brothers and sisters then living at the time of her death; I give, devise and bequeath unto my living brothers and sisters to share and share alike. Lera argued that this clause precluded the application of the anti-lapse statute. Lewis argued that the words do not create a class gift and that the anti-lapse statute applies. The trial court granted Lera summary judgment and Lewis appealed.