In re Estate of Barrie - 240 Iowa 431, 35 N.W.2d 658 (1949)

Rule:

Iowa courts are free to place their construction, interpretation and sanction upon the will of a nonresident of the state who dies owning real property within the state whether the will be admitted to probate under Iowa Code § 604.3 or § 633.33 (1946), although it has been admitted to probate in the state of the domicile of testator.

Facts:

Mary E. Barrie, domiciled in Whiteside County, Illinois, died owning real and personal property in Illinois and real property in Tama County, Iowa. The instrument in question was offered for probate in Whiteside County, Illinois. Although first admitted to probate, it was later denied probate after the Illinois Supreme Court had ruled that said instrument had been revoked by cancellation and that decedent died intestate. Thereafter the instrument was offered for probate in Tama County, Iowa, by one of the beneficiaries named therein. To the petition for probate, decedent's heirs at law filed objections based upon the judgment of the Illinois Supreme Court, to the effect that the said last will and testament had been revoked, and that the said judgment was conclusive upon the Iowa courts. The proponents filed a motion to strike objections, arguing that the same did not constitute a valid basis for denying probate since the foreign judgment was not conclusive and binding on state courts. The proponents appealed.

Issue:

Was the judgment of the Illinois Supreme Court binding and conclusive upon the Iowa courts, thereby rendering the same a valid basis for denying probate of the decedent’s will?

Answer:

No.

Conclusion:

In reversing the order overruling the motion to strike the intestate heirs' objections, the court ruled that Iowa Code §§ 604.3 and 633.3 (1946) authorized state courts to place their own construction, interpretation, and sanction on the will of the Illinois resident concerning her real property that was located in Iowa, notwithstanding the fact that it had been admitted to probate, or denied probate, in the decedent's state of domicile. Further, U.S. Const. art. IV, § 1's full faith and credit provision did not render the denial of probate in the sister state jurisdiction binding on Iowa's determination of the will's validity. Moreover, Iowa was entitled to invoke its own statutes governing the revocation of wills which authorized revocation only upon the performance of specifically described acts, despite the fact that such acts constituted a revocation in Illinois.