Brackenbury v. Hodgkin
Supreme Judicial Court of Maine
102 A. 106 (1917)
Facts
Mrs. Hodgkin (defendant) wrote a letter to her daughter and her daughter’s husband, the Brackenburys (plaintiffs), offering that if they move to Mrs. Hodgkin’s home and care for her until her death, they could have the home when she died. After the Brackenburys accepted the offer and moved to the home, the parties began not to get along. Mrs. Hodgkin eventually ordered the Brackenburys to leave, but they refused. Subsequently, Mrs. Hodgkin executed and delivered a deed for the home to her son, Walter Hodgkin (defendant), reserving a life estate for herself. The Brackenburys brought suit to obtain a reconveyance of the home from Walter to Mrs. Hodgkin and a constructive trust in the home for the Brackenburys in accordance with their contract. The trial court found in favor of the Brackenburys. The Hodgkins appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Cornish, C.J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 709,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 44,500 briefs, keyed to 983 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
