That portion of a man’s property which he is free to disposeof by will to beneficiaries other than his wife and children. By the ancient common law,this amounted to one-third of his estate if he was survived by both wife and children. 2Bl. Comm. 492; Hopkins v. Wright, 17 Tex. 36. In the civil law (by the Lex Falcidia) itamounted to three-fourths. Mackeld. Rom. Law,
Black’s Law Online Dictionary
