New York Court of Appeals
Francis B. Ortelere v. Teachers' Retirement Board of the City of New York
July 2, 196925 N.Y.2d 196
Summary
The Court reversed the Appellate Division and remanded for a new trial, holding that the teacher's election of maximum retirement benefits was voidable because she was mentally incompetent under the modern Restatement (Second) of Contracts test. The majority emphasized that the retirement board had notice of her condition and that the proper standard, not the antiquated cognitive test, should govern capacity determinations.