In re Knickerbocker

912 P.2d 969 (1996)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
I
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

In re Knickerbocker

Utah Supreme Court
912 P.2d 969 (1996)

Facts

Bradford Knickerbocker (plaintiff) and Christine Knickerbocker married in 1984. In 1991, Christine filed for divorce, and the court awarded her exclusive temporary use of a house she owned in joint tenancy with Bradford. Soon after she filed for divorce, Christine learned she had a life-threatening disease. As a joint tenant, at her death, Christine’s interest would revert to Bradford. In an effort to preserve assets for her children from a prior marriage, Christine decided to establish a trust for her two children. Christine executed a deed conveying her interest in the house to herself “as a Tenant in Common.” As a tenant in common, at her death, Christine’s interest could go to anyone she designated. The deed was recorded. After establishing the trust for her two children, Christine executed a deed conveying her one-half interest in the house to the trustees. Upon Christine’s death, Bradford filed an action against James Cannon (defendant), Christine’s brother and the representative of Christine’s estate. The action challenged the severance of the joint tenancy. The trial court held that Christine’s attempt to sever the joint tenancy was legally ineffective, because she did not convey the property to a third party. Cannon appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Howe, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 802,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 802,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 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.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 802,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Property

Key Terms