How have courts interpreted oral contracts in the context of a servant's claim?

In Maddison v. Alderson a female servant sued for specific performance of an oral contract whereby her deceased employer agreed to leave her ah estate in land if she would continue to work for him without wages for an indefinite period. He left a will which gave the estate to her but the will failed for proper attestation. The will made no mention of any contract or inducement to her to work without wages. It was held that no contract was proved and even if the contract was established the servant’s case did not show that her acts were unequivocally referable to the contract. Two comments by Lord O‘Hagen in Maddison v. Alderson are relevant: At p. 483: “ * * * Too much attention was bestowed upon the proof of the contract and too little on the sufficiency of the performance, which was the more substantial part of the burden on the appellant in supporting her claim.”