New York Court of Appeals
In the Matter of the Probate of the Will of Eliza M. Smith, Deceased
April 15, 188495 N.Y. 516
Summary
The New York Court of Appeals reversed the lower courts' decree admitting the will of Eliza M. Smith, holding that the attorney‑beneficiary's testimony about a lost will and a memorandum violated section 829 of the Code of Civil Procedure and that the contestant was a person deriving an interest under the deceased within that section. The Court also affirmed that no presumption of undue influence arises merely because the beneficiary was the decedent's attorney, but that the attorney bears the burden of proving the will was freely made.