The Estate of David F. Oaks v. Lynne Stouff
2020 WI App 29 (2020)
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Rule of Law:
A gift causa mortis, a gift made in contemplation of imminent death, is valid even if the donor dies by suicide, provided the suicide is the result of a present mental illness. The delivery requirement for such a gift between cohabitating individuals is relaxed and may be satisfied constructively, such as by leaving a clear written instrument in a shared residence.
Facts:
- David Oaks and Lynne Stouff were in a romantic relationship for over twenty-three years and lived together for the last ten years before Oaks' death.
- Oaks was estranged from his adult daughter, Cheri Wardell.
- Oaks, a Vietnam veteran, had been diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), was prescribed antidepressants, and complained of head pain he believed was causing his mental health ailments in the months before his death.
- On March 8, 2018, while Stouff was asleep upstairs in their shared home, Oaks wrote a note stating, "As I leave this existence I want all worldly belongings to be assigned to Lynne."
- Oaks left the note on a table and then fatally shot himself in the head.
- Stouff found the note after she was awakened by the gunshot.
- Oaks' official death certificate listed his cause of death as a self-inflicted gunshot wound resulting from depression.
Procedural Posture:
- David Oaks died intestate, and his daughter, Cheri Wardell, filed a petition for formal administration of his estate in the Chippewa County Circuit Court (the trial court).
- Wardell was appointed personal representative of the Estate.
- Lynne Stouff filed a claim against the Estate, asserting entitlement to all of Oaks' property under the doctrine of gift causa mortis based on a note he left.
- The Estate denied Stouff's claim.
- Stouff moved for summary judgment in the circuit court, and the Estate filed a cross-motion for summary judgment.
- The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of Stouff, awarding her the entire estate.
- The Estate, as appellant, appealed the circuit court's order to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals.
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Issue:
Does a handwritten note bequeathing all of a person's worldly belongings, left in a shared home for his cohabitating partner immediately before he dies by suicide as a result of a present mental illness, constitute a valid gift causa mortis?
Opinions:
Majority - Stark, P.J.
Yes. A handwritten note left under these circumstances constitutes a valid gift causa mortis. The court held that suicide resulting from a present mental illness, such as depression, satisfies the requirement that the gift be made in view of death from a 'present illness.' The court distinguished between the manner of death (suicide) and the cause of death (mental illness), reasoning that modern psychology recognizes that a person suffering from severe depression is not freely choosing death but is succumbing to an illness. Furthermore, the delivery requirement was met through constructive delivery; because Oaks and Stouff cohabitated and the gift encompassed all of his belongings, leaving a note in their shared home where she would find it was sufficient to transfer dominion over the property.
Analysis:
This decision significantly clarifies Wisconsin law on gifts causa mortis by aligning the doctrine with modern understandings of mental health. It establishes that suicide does not automatically invalidate such a gift, shifting the factual inquiry to whether the suicide was a product of a 'present illness' like depression. This creates a new precedent in Wisconsin, rejecting a historical rule that viewed suicide as a rational act that could not satisfy the 'illness or peril' requirement. The ruling also reinforces the flexible, context-dependent nature of the delivery requirement for gifts, particularly by applying a 'relaxed rule' for cohabitants that acknowledges the practicalities of their shared living situation.
