Court Opinion

ID: 9591576
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 00:05:28.713968+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:02:30.277572
License: Public Domain

Judge PHILLIPS
dissenting.
The careful and able trial judge denied the propounders’ motions for a directed verdict and judgment notwithstanding the verdict because he was of the opinion that the evidence raised an issue for the jury. Viewing the evidence in the most favorable light to the caveator, as we are required to do, In re Andrews, 299 N.C. 52, 261 S.E. 2d 198 (1980), I believe that the trial judge was correct.
The evidence showed that testatrix was elderly, weak, and exceptionally vulnerable to undue influence. She suffered from a complete stroke, adult onset diabetes, hypertension with cerebral complications, and an occasional aphasia, or inability to express herself or to understand language, caused by hardening of the arteries to the brain. At times she was not lucid, spoke “gibberish,” and did not comprehend what was being said to her. These problems existed several months before testatrix made her will, as well as afterwards, and were alleviated somewhat by certain medicines prescribed for her; but when her will was made she had stopped taking her medicine for awhile. Her personal physician testified that on occasion she could be led. The husband of one of the propounders, Mrs. Llewellyn, arranged for an attorney to meet with testatrix and make her will. Just a few weeks later Mrs. Llewellyn obtained a power of attorney and thereafter controlled testatrix’s business affairs and property, some of which was sold, including the lot that was to have been devised to caveator. .
Caveator and testatrix had a close and loving relationship and she had promised to will to him and his mother some land in Texas. Equitable reasons existed for her doing that, since ca-veator’s parents had lost the land some years earlier in a loan transaction that was given the form of a sale, and each of the several times caveator’s parents and caveator tried to get testatrix and the other interested relatives to accept repayment of the loan and to convey the property back, testatrix told them not to worry about it, as she was going to will the property back to *232them. Yet despite these promises, apparently made in good faith, testatrix’s will devised all the Texas property and nearly everything else to propounders. This was evidence that testatrix’s will departed from her earlier settled testamentary intent, and along with the other evidence tends to show that her will was unduly influenced. Though each individual fact by itself may have little probative weight, collectively they support the verdict and judgment appealed from in my opinion. That caveator’s evidence does not provide direct proof of undue influence is not fatal, since the nature of undue influence is such that direct proof of it rarely exists. In re Andrews, supra.
My vote, therefore, is to affirm the judgment.