American Nat. Bank v. Meadors
| Decision Date | 14 March 1931 |
| Citation | 36 S.W.2d 86 |
| Parties | AMERICAN NAT. BANK v. MEADORS et al. |
| Court | Tennessee Supreme Court |
Appeal from Chancery Court, Davidson County; R. B. C. Howell, Chancellor.
Suit by the American National Bank, as executor under the will of Andy Meadors, deceased, against Allen Meadors and others. From a decree directing that two guardians ad litem be paid certain sums out of estate as costs, complainant appeals.
Affirmed.
Fyke Farmer and Bass, Berry & Sims, all of Nashville, for appellant.
Wm. J. Wade, Alfred T. Adams, Avery Handly, and Joseph Martin, all of Nashville, for appellee guardian ad litem.
C. H. Rutherford, of Nashville, for defendant appellee.
Andy Meadors died testate, devising his estate to his widow for life, with remainder equally to his "relatives" and to the "relatives" of his widow. The complainant, as executor, filed suit in the chancery court of Davidson county, for construction and definition of the term "relatives." A large number of persons of kin to the testator were made defendants. Guardians ad litem were appointed for minors; one for those of kin to testator, and another for those of kin to testator's widow. The term was held to apply only to the next of kin of the testator and of his widow. American Nat. Bank v. Meadors, 161 Tenn. 184, 30 S.W.(2d) 246. None of the minor defendants was next of kin, and therefore none was adjudged to have any interest in the estate.
The present appeal is from a decree of the chancellor directing that each of the two guardians ad litem be paid $500 out of the estate of the testator, as costs of the case.
The amount so allowed is substantial, and the case is therefore not within the application of the cases holding that an appeal will not be entertained solely to review the action of a trial court in adjudging costs. Costs referred to in those cases were ordinary court costs. State v. Bush, 141 Tenn. 229, 208 S. W. 607; Wright v. Eakin, 151 Tenn. 681, 270 S. W. 992. The motion of appellees to dismiss the appeal is accordingly denied.
In Smith v. Haire, 138 Tenn. 255, 197 S. W. 678, an estate was being administered in which contestants had successfully resisted the probating of a fraudulent will. Compensation for the services so rendered by counsel for the contestants was adjudged against the estate as "expenses incurred in the administration of the estate," on the theory, and for the reason, that their services inured to the benefit of the estate. The court then said:
In the case before us, the administration of the...
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...We are constrained to reach the same conclusion with respect to the claim of the guardian ad litem. The case of American Nat. Bank v. Meadors, 162 Tenn. 324, 326, 36 S.W.2d 86, does not, we think, support the contrary view. In that case the minor defendants were making no claim to any part ......
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