Estate of Mooney

Thomas Murphy, in pro. per.; Nancy Danish, in pro. per.; Daniel Murphy, in pro. per.; and Edward Murphy, in pro. per., for Claimants and Respondents.

Under a will executed in 1961, Jean Marie Mooney left the bulk of her estate to her father or, if he predeceased her, to her two sisters, Doris and Lucile, in equal shares. By the time Mooney passed away in 2007, her father and both sisters had predeceased her. Both sisters were survived by adult children. This brought California's antilapse statute, Probate Code [1] section 21110, into play. The probate court construed section 21110 to require that each of the surviving adult children of Doris and Lucile receive an equal, one-seventh share of Mooney's estate. Lucile's children appeal, contending that they were each entitled to receive a one-sixth share of the estate and Doris's four children were each entitled to a one-eighth share. We agree, and reverse the probate court's order.

Mooney died on January 17, 2007. Her will, which was executed in 1961, devised certain specific items of real and personal property to her nieces and nephews, and devised the residue of her estate as follows: "I hereby give, devise and…