CHARLES MITTEL, APPELLANT,
v.
FRANK KAHN, AS PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF EMMY STRAUSS, APPELLEE
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Appellant sought specific performance of an alleged oral agreement between his uncle and aunt to make irrevocable wills naming him as co-beneficiary. The trial court found insufficient evidence of any binding contract not to revoke the wills, and the appellate court affirmed, holding that appellant failed to meet the clear and convincing evidence standard.
The appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment, holding that appellant failed to sustain his burden of proving the existence of an agreement to make irrevocable wills by clear and convincing evidence.
[1] Similar wills executed on the same date do not, in and of themselves, establish the existence of a contract obligating the parties not to change the provisions of their w…
[2] An agreement to make irrevocable wills must be established by clear and convincing evidence.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the Court finds that although Nathan Strauss and Emmy Strauss executed similar Wills on January 11, 1965, with regard to beneficiaries of said Wills they did not enter into any contract which bound either party not to change the beneficiaries of said Wills at a subsequent date to January 11, 1965.”
The trial court's central finding that no binding agreement existed between the testators regarding the irrevocability of beneficiary designations.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceNathan and Emmy Strauss executed similar wills on January 11, 1965, naming appellant Charles Mittel as a co-beneficiary along with appellee Frank Kahn…
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Appellant, plaintiff below, seeks review of a final judgment rendered against him in a non-jury trial and finding that he was not entitled to specifically enforce an alleged agreement not to revoke the mutual wills of his uncle, and aunt by marriage, Nathan and Emmy Strauss, in which he was named a co-beneficiary with the appel-lee.
After the hearing on this cause, where the major testimony relied on by the appellant was that of the attorney that drafted the wills, the court found:
“This cause having come on for trial without a jury on February 10, 1972, and the plaintiff having presented testimony of witnesses in his behalf, there being no testimony introduced in behalf of the defendant, and counsel for the parties having presented final arguments and this Court having considered such testimony and arguments and being otherwise fully advised in the premises finds as follows:
“1. That Nathan Strauss and Emmy Strauss, each, executed similar Wills bearing date of January 11, 1965.
*31“2. That Nathan Strauss predeceased Emmy Strauss and that his Will was admitted to probate in the County Judge’s Court of Dade County, Florida.
“3. That Emmy Strauss revoked her Will of January 11, 1965, by her Will of May 7, 1970, which, upon her death, was admitted to probate.
“4. That the Wills of January 11, 1965, have probative matter but are not legally or factually sufficient in and of themselves to establish the existence of an oral agreement or contract obligating either party not to change the provisions of the Wills regarding the beneficiaries thereunder, as set forth in the Wills of January 11, 1965.
“5. That upon consideration of all the testimony and evidence before the Court the Court finds that although Nathan Strauss and Emmy Strauss executed similar Wills on January 11, 1965, with regard to beneficiaries of said Wills they did not enter into any contract which bound either party not to change the beneficiaries of said Wills at a subsequent date to January 11, 1965.
“Upon consideration, it is
“ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that judgment be and is hereby entered for the defendant and that this cause be and it is hereby dismissed, with prejudice to the plaintiff, and the defendant shall be entitled to recover from the plaintiff such costs as shall be subsequently determined by this Court.”
Emmy Strauss’s subsequent Will revoked appellant’s bequest under the prior instrument and named the appellee as sole beneficiary of his mother’s estate.
The sole point for our consideration is whether the trial court erred in holding that the appellant-plaintiff had failed to sustain his burden of showing that an agreement to make irrevocable wills was entered into between Nathan and Emmy Strauss. Based upon the record before us, we are of the opinion that the proof presented by the appellant fell far short of establishing the existence of such an agreement by clear and convincing evidence. Hagan v. Laragione, Fla. 1967, 205 So.2d 289; Keith v. Culp, Fla.App. 1959, 111 So. 2d 278; and cases cited therein. Therefore, it is our view that the conclusion reached by the trial judge was amply supported by the record before him and no reversible error has been made to appear. Thus, the judgment herein appealed is hereby affirmed.
Affirmed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Mittel v. Kahn, 275 So. 2d 544 (Fla. 1973)…Certiorari dismissed. 271 So. 2d 30. ERVIN, Acting C. J., and ADKINS, BOYD and McCAIN, JJ., concur. DEKLE, J., dissents.…
Authorities Cited
- Keith v. Culp, 111 So. 2d 278 (Fla. 1st DCA 1959)
- Hagan v. Fabiano Laragione, 205 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 1967)