Evidence, Relevancy. Witness. Practice, Civil, Requests and rulings.
At the trial of issues as to the execution of a will and whether the testator was of sound mind or was unduly influenced, evidence tending to show that the person alleged to have exercised the undue influence, who was named an executor in the will and who was appointed a special administrator during the controversy as to the allowance of the will, had attempted to have the estate appraised at a figure much less than there was evidence tending to warrant, should be excluded as irrelevant to any issue on trial, and, in the discretion of the trial judge, may be excluded if offered to affect the credibility of the executor as a witness.
At such a trial it is proper for the judge to refuse to instruct the jury as to the length of time within which a will should be presented for probate by the person having it in custody, such question not being pertinent to the issues or to the evidence.
BY THE COURT.
These exceptions relate to the trial in the Superior Court of the issue among others whether the will of James Ford was procured to be made through the undue influence of one Harwood.
There was no error in excluding the offers in various forms to show that Harwood at the time of the making of the inventory for special administrators attempted to have the estate of the deceased appraised at a great deal lower figure than there was evidence tending to warrant. Occurrences of this nature after the death of the testator had no bearing upon the question whether undue influence had been exercised several years earlier, at the time when the will was executed. So far as such conduct may have affected the credibility of the witness, if at all, its admission was within the discretion of the trial court.
The refusal to instruct the jury as to the length of time within which a will should be presented for probate by the person having its custody was not erroneous in law. That also had no pertinency to the issues on trial and the evidence disclosed on the record.
Exceptions overruled.