. 

Mrs. 8. 8. Sapp, DIrector uukExecutlva Secretuy 

Touhsr Ret~remellt Syrtom of Tour 

fiustia, Teur 

Dear Mrs. Sapp: Opinion Numbs; O-3434 

R;r: Pqrnoitt of l curnuMsd contributions of member of 

Tcacber ketlrrmsat System 

who died bsfors retbanent. 

We have received your letter of recent data la which 

you ssk the oplalon of tbfs depsrtaasnt oa s question concsrnh~ ths 

proper person to whom the accumulated coatributlons of a dscoucd 

member of tbr Tcsehsr Rcttremsnt System should k psfd. 

.,~I 

Subssctfon 6. Section S, of the Tmukr Retlremrat Act 

(Article 29221, Vs~aoa’s Aaaot&sd Civil Statukr) coatdam tba following prorlsioal 

Sh o uld l memb er dk before ntiromcn$ tbs unouut of his l ecumul&ed coatributloas 

standing to ths credit of his individual occouat slW1 

be psid ss provlded br ths lsws of descent and distribution Of T~T.M ualess he hss dlneted tkt sccouat 

to be pad othexriss.~ 

State; Cecil8 Mary Wattem iu a member of tha Tseclaer 

Rotlmment Systan. Vader the suthotit7 of ths l beve qootad provisioa 

she desipated as bsrrfieiary ‘Rwennd Mothsr Bonsventun Geaarsl.. 

After Sister Cecile’s death, but kfon the monsy could bs paid to 

Rovsrend Mother BOBWOPtUT4, the Reverend Mother died. 

Revsrend Mother Boasventure was Superior Gaaersl of 

the congzapsttoa of the SMerm of Charity of tbs htsrasts Word, l 

Chtholic nl!glous order which bss Its bssdquaztors la Ssa Antonio, 

Text. Reverend Mother Bonweature was her rellglow nuno. Her 

SUCC~~~O~ in office es Supertor General is Rennad Met&t L4wrkn. 

YOU with to kaow wbetlwr tbs contrlbutioas should bs paid to Reverend 

k(Qthc? LueAu or to the heirs Of Reverend Mother Boasuattm, sssun&g sbs died tatestate, undsr our st&utes of descent and dirtribution. 

Tttle 46, Vsrnon’s Annotated Civil St+teq Cptaioa No. o-2009. 
Mrs. B. 8. S~PP. P~V 2. 

He cuauot glvs s CatAgoric ulawor to your qwrttcm. 

In the first place, tbir department 5s aot smpowrred to pasr upon 

questions of feet. In ths second place, we have ken unable to find 

my COWS dirsctly In pofat. However, ia view of the conelusloa 

which w reach. a c ~tsg o r ic l nswr 5s not aeessssry. 

we beliuve that it ts proper to rmsort to eats involving 

tbs constructlea of wills aad to draw aa saology between those ~ssss 

and the sltustion radar eons5dsrat5oa. 

It 5s wll sstabl5~hsd that 5f under s will A bensf5ciary 

5s aot designatsd with prseisioa, or 5f the dssignstioa 5s underteh 

or amb5guous,sxtr5nsle evidence or circumstances surrounding 

the testator may be relorted to ia order to 5dsat5fy the Icgstss or 

devissc. Lightfoot v. Poindoxtsr (U‘rit of error nfuocd), 199 S.W. 

1152; Lsdd v. Xhitledge (Writ of error refused), 205 S.W. 463; 

Methodist C:rphtige of Waco v. Buckads Orphms’ Home of Dallas, 

at al. (Writ of error dismissed), 261 S.K. 203; 69 CJ. 152; 44 TexJur.792. 

we quota the followiag from the opiaioa of ths court 5a 

Ladd v. Whitlsdge, suprat 

*It 5s compstcnt to l dm5t psrol 

evidence, as it 5s somet5mes, though not vary 

accurately l xprsesed, to explalo a w5ll (or 

et&r written kstrument) by showhg tbs 

sltut5oa of the testator ia his reX&ion to 

perroam and th5ags armad h5m. or, as it Is 

often expxsrsed, by proof of the surroamdiag 

drcumstmsss, la order that his will may 

be read in tha light of tbs eircxmstuues in 

rhleh hs WBS placed at ths time of -Mae it. 

His intent must be 4scert4iasd trern thr me-- 

iag of the words ia tbs iastrxmeat, and from Thor 

words ~Xoas; but, aa b may be supposed to have 

uesdlangublle WithNfO~aCetOths liht~tiollh 

which ha was placed to the et&e of his f&y, 

his property, sd other circamstuaes rekttag 

to hlmsslf iadividually, aad to his affsirs, the 

lbw admits eatrixwie l vfdence of there facts 

amj circumstances to l nabk ths court to dlscover thr muniag attached by ths Ustatorr ts 

the wrdr used 5a tbs w5il, aad to spply tbsm 

to the particuler fwtr of ths C&se. For this purpose, every materlrl fret thst will eaabls the 

Court to idSaltily tb. p8?SOM O? thiSlg* PMILtioasd In the tnstrsment la sdmissibbls, ia or&r 

to piece the court, whoss provia- it is to dstsrm5ae the mesalag of the words, as near as 

may be, in the situation of ths testrtor, when he 

used them in maltta~ his will.. 
. 

Mrs. 8. B. Sapp, page 1. 

la the ease of Crubb v’. Aadsrooa (lb’rlt of error dismiusd) 3g S.w.(2d) 647, the court had befors it ths conotructioa 

o f l wffl. The court, speaking through ths press& Chief Justice 

of our Supreme Court, used tbe follow5ag laaguager 

‘* l l The courts in dstermiaing 

the in4 nt of the tsstator w5ll look to ths 

language used ia the purported will, hio 

rituetion at the t5ms of the maNag thereof, 

as well as his conduct with rsfersncs thereto 

thereafter * + l .î 

“+ l *It 5s trus that par01 ttstknoay 

5s no t l dmissibls to ceatradict ths terms of 

a will aor to show aa 5ntention evidencedby 

other ltigwge not used thereia, yet extrinsic 

l vidsacs 50 admissibls to show ths situation 

of ths tertator ia relation to psrrons bnd 

thirys around htm ia order Chat his wU1 my’ 

bs read ia the ltght of ths circumstmcss in 

which bs warn plaud at the time of making 

it, The Xaw admits such testimony to enable 

the court to discovsr the msaaing attached ’ 

br ths brstator to tba words used la W will, 

and for this purpose everymaterial fact that 

w5U enable tbo court to 5dest5fy the person 

or things mentioasd ia ths instrument is bdmissibls in order ts plus tbs court in tbs 

situatloa of the tss8or when bs used the words 

in the w5xLw 

And our Su rem8 Court La the came of Harsell et al,, v. 

Frey et al., ll? S.W.(Ld 5 413, meds the followfag statement. 

% order io l scertaio tbs intention 

of ths tsstator exprsssed ha wU1, the lurgurge 

ustd therein may bs eonstrued b toraection 

witth he l urrouad5ag facts and eircnmstaaeer 

sx5rting at the time the will w88 mub. lf necessuy, per04 bstimoay may be heard to gathsr 

tke trse Lotkatlon of the tsstator l spressed in 

gucb w5llt urd such 5ntsatioa, 5f lsgrl, must pnVbU: 

See tiso Federal Land Bask of Hcuston v. Little (Com..App.) 

107 s.w.(Ld) 3741 Ellet v, MeCord (Writ of error rsfussd), 41 S.W. (2d) ~

110. 
I.’ 

. 

Mrs. 8. B. Sspp, psg8 4. 

As w hsvs heretofore meatlonsd, the dsslg~t5on In 

question wss to ‘Revsrend Mother Bonsvtnturc Gsnerel.. Jiswrend 

Mother Bomronture was her r4ligiou8 nune. ‘Cknsral” obvlously 

referee to the off5cs of Superlor General. You wish to know whether 

it ws8 intsndsd by the member tbat ths coatrlbutlone were to ba pdd, 

Lo tbs event of her daub, to Reverend hiother Bonsvechue~er aa individurl or to ths psrson holding the office of Superior General. He 

bellsve th8t there is sufficiaat UMeTtainty, & vlsvc of the foregoing 

sutbor5tie8, to suthorlu the faacbar Retksmsat Bosrd to rerort to 

cxtrlnric l vldsncs 5s order to ekrlfy the dssignst5oon. 

SLtrr C4cUe ‘liao l nPuarb4r of ths congrsgatlon. Ml 

members of ths conpregatloa tshe Vow8 bf poverty upon becoming 

mamkrs sad l re unable under the lrws of ths church to own ‘say 

propsrty ladlvidually. The fact8 may #how that Sister Cede as a 

member of the congregrtlon wss cognlraut of the church rules at 

the t5me of the design&ton. rod thus knew that lbc lhwrend tiother 

could own no property lndlvlduslly. Tbls would ccrtslaly 5ndicsts 

sa intention to designate the offks or l ucc4asor ia off5cs rether 

thsn the tndtvldusl e8 such. . 

We 818 informed thrt the congre&stion is WiuLtg to 

provide sn lndsmaity sgrcement fully protcctlng tvcryona spslast 

l ll Dsbllity, You are respscffully edvlsed thst rbould t.k+ Tescher 

Retirement Soard make such l determination 88 outlined ln ths 

preceding parsgrsph, you would bs l uthorisod to pay the eoatrlbution8 to Reverend Mother ~Ls8crien, Superior Geusral of the. Congregstion of the Sister8 of Cb8rity of Incarnate Word. Such en bdemaity 

sgreement would protect ths Board from furthsr llsbfllty. 

Vsry’truly yours, 

A~TURNEYGENERALOFiEXAS 

a/ George W. Sparks 

BY G4orge iK. bpsrks 

hSSi#tut 

APPROVED AEG If,1942 

o/ GROVER SELLERS 

FiRST ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENXXAL 

SWIstvmb 

APPROVED 

ePP;13N CGMMiTTEE 

BT ,i’. RWG,CXAXRMAN