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Remedies Keyed to Tabb, 8th
Felton v. Finley
Citation:
69 Idaho 381, 209 P.2d 899 (1949)Facts
When Seigle Coleman died testate in December 1943, his will bequeathed $500 each to certain nieces and nephews with the remainder to charitable organizations. Two nephews, Seigle Finley and William Finley, employed respondent attorney Felton on a 50% contingent fee basis to contest the will. Felton conditioned his employment on all six heirs joining the representation. Despite multiple written requests and personal contacts by the employing nephews, four heirs—Orval Finley, Ida Davis, Nan Holder, and Rose Finley Nichles—explicitly refused to sign employment contracts, stating they would “have nothing to do with it” and considered contesting the will morally wrong. Felton proceeded with the contest knowing of their refusal. The contest succeeded, invalidating charitable bequests and resulting in equal distribution among all six heirs. The four non-employing heirs voluntarily accepted their enhanced inheritance but refused to pay Felton any fees, denying they had employed him.
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