Dauray v. Estate of Mee
| Decision Date | 07 September 2012 |
| Docket Number | C.A. No. PB 11-2640,C.A. No. PB 10-1195,C.A. No. PB 11-2757 |
| Parties | MARY LOU DAURAY v. ESTATE OF GABRIELLE D. MEE (a/k/a Gabrielle Malvina Mee), et al. MARY LOU DAURAY, an heir-at-law of GABRIELLE D. MEE, and on behalf of the ESTATE OF GABRIELLE D. MEE v. THE LEGION OF CHRIST OF NORTH AMERICA, INC., OCEAN PASTORAL CENTER, INC. d/b/a THE LEGION OF CHRIST (RI) INCORPORATED, THE LEGION OF CHRIST, INCORPORATED, LEGION OF CHRIST INCORPORATED, MATER ECCLESIAE, INC. (MOTHER OF THE CHURCH, INC.), HOMBRE NUEVO (RI), INC. (NEW MAN (RI) INC.), OVERBROOK, INCORPORATED, PASTORAL SUPPORT SERVICES INC., LEGIONS OF CHRIST, LEGION OF CHRIST AND CONSECRATED REGNUM CHRISTI MEMBERS ASSISTANCE FOUNDATION, LEGION OF CHRIST COLLEGE, INC., FR. ANTHONY BANNON, LC, Individually and as Responsible Officer for other Defendants, and XYZ CORPORATION, or other entities not known at this time MARY LOU DAURAY, an heir-at-law of GABRIELLE D. MEE, and on behalf of the ESTATE OF GABRIELLE D. MEE v. BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., as successor-in-interest by merger or otherwise to FLEET NATIONAL BANK, as Trustee of the Timothy J. Mee Foundation Trust and the Timothy J. Mee Charitable Trust, and as co-trustee of the Gabrielle D. Mee Trust, THE LEGION OF CHRIST OF NORTH AMERICA, INC., OCEAN PASTORAL CENTER, INC. d/b/a THE LEGION OF CHRIST (RI) INCORPORATED, THE LEGION OF CHRIST, INCORPORATED, LEGION OF CHRIST INCORPORATED MATER ECCLESIAE, INC. (MOTHER OF THE CHURCH, INC.), HOMBRE NUEVO (RI), INC. (NEW MAN (RI) INC.), OVERBROOK, INCORPORATED, PASTORAL SUPPORT SERVICES INC., LEGIONS OF CHRIST, LEGION OF CHRIST AND CONSECRATED REGNUM CHRISTI MEMBERS ASSISTANCE FOUNDATION, LEGION OF CHRIST COLLEGE, INC., FR. ANTHONY BANNON, LC, Individually and as Responsible Officer for other Defendants, and XYZ CORPORATION, or other entities not known at this time. |
| Court | Superior Court of Rhode Island |
DECISION
Before the Court are Defendants'/Appellees' (Defendants) Motions for Summary Judgment, pursuant to Super. R. Civ. P. 56.1 This Decision applies to the three separate, unconsolidated cases captioned above. The Court heard oral argument regarding all three matters together over the course of three days. In the will case (C.A. No. PB 10-1195), Plaintiff/Appellant Mary Lou Dauray is appealing a probate court Order admitting the will of Gabrielle D. Mee, claiming the will was executed under undue influence, fraud, and mistake inthe inducement. In the inter vivos gifts case (C.A. No. 11-2640), Ms. Dauray claims the Defendants unduly influenced and fraudulently induced Mrs. Mee into giving approximately $60 million to the Defendants—particularly, the Legion of Christ.2 In the trust case (C.A. No. PB 11-2757), Ms. Dauray alleges that Defendant Bank of America, N.A. (the Bank), as successor-in-interest by merger or otherwise to Fleet National Bank, breached its fiduciary duties as trustee of multiple trusts. Defendants move for summary judgment in all three matters, arguing mainly that Ms. Dauray has not and cannot present any evidence creating a genuine dispute of fact that Defendants did not unduly influence or fraudulently induce Mrs. Mee's actions and that the Bank did not breach any fiduciary duties.
Mrs. Gabrielle D. Mee was born on June 10, 1911 and lived a devoutly Catholic life. See Gabrielle Mee Dep. Tr. 4:12-7:1, July 12, 2001.3 From the age of twelve, Mrs. Mee attended daily Mass. Id. at 5:17-7:1. She earned her high school degree from a religious school operated by the Religious of Jesus and Mary, a Roman Catholic religious Order. Id. at 4:12-24. Mrs. Mee's education was bilingual, and she worked as a French translator before marrying Timothy J. Mee in 1950. See id. at 4:12-5:8. Mr. Mee similarly was a devout Catholic with a Catholic upbringing. See id. at 7:2-10:14. Together, they attended Mass and recited the Rosary nightly. Id. at 5:17-10:14.
Mr. Mee was a successful businessman who served as a director of Fleet National Bank and accumulated significant wealth. See id. at 10:15-11:20. He passed away on December 18, 1985. Id. at 13:10-12. During his lifetime, Mr. Mee handled the Mees' finances and investments, although Mrs. Mee was generally, but perhaps not always, included in the discussions. Id. at 12:14-13:9; Robert Sylvestre Dep. 16:1-14, Sept. 13, 2011.
In February of 1982, Mr. Mee created a trust indenture characterized as a charitable remainder unitrust. (Pl.'s Ex. G1.) The original charitable beneficiary was the Hope Charitable Foundation, created in 1967 by Mr. Mee. See id. In September of 1982, Mrs. Mee by trust indenture created a revocable trust to benefit the Hope Charitable Foundation on her death. See Pl.'s Ex. G3. That trust was amended twice, but income and residue remained directed to the Hope Charitable Foundation. See id.
In January of 1985, before Mr. Mee's death, he established the Timothy J. Mee Foundation Trust. At that time, the Mees created the Timothy J. Mee Foundation to replace the Hope Charitable Foundation as the trust beneficiary. See Pl.'s Ex. G2. Mrs. Mee explained that she and her husband shared the ideal that "[y]ou have to give back to God some of what God has given you," and that, in their eyes, supporting the Church came first. (Mee Dep. 10:6-14.) Mrs. Mee reiterated, Id. at 15:5-11.
In October of 1987, after Mr. Mee's death, Mrs. Mee established the Gabrielle D. Mee Charitable Trust, originally to benefit the Contemplatives of Our Lady of Joy (the Contemplatives). See Pl.'s Ex. G4. The Contemplatives were a small, start-up, religious Order with preliminary recognition from the Roman Catholic Church. See id.; Silvestre Dep. 19:5-24:2. They were founded by two Rhode Island brothers in the Catholic religion. (Silvestre Dep. 19:5-24:2.) Mrs. Mee's 1987 trust funded the Contemplatives, and Mrs. Mee allowed them to reside in the Mee's North Smithfield residence rent-free. See id.; Pl.'s Ex. TT (Mem. from Beth Kernan, Feb. 1, 1993).
The Legion of Christ4 was established in 1941 in Mexico by Father Marcial Maciel Degollado. Father Maciel served as the General Director of the Legion of Christ until 2005. Regnum Christi is an organization associated with the Legion of Christ. Mrs. Mee testified that she first learned of the Legion of Christ around 1989 from a church friend at her parish in Narragansett. (Mee Dep. 15:23-16:6.) She learned that the Legion of Christ was "with the Catholic church without deviation," so she "knew that was the way to go" with her charitable donations. Id. at 17:3-12. A trust officer at the Bank claims, however, that he informed Mrs. Mee about the Legion of Christ. (Silvestre Dep. 42:1-43:9.)
Soon after, Mrs. Mee visited the Legion of Christ at their center in Cheshire, Connecticut. (Mee Dep. 18:2-7; Silvestre Dep. 43:20-45:18.) She went there because she wanted to meet them and thought they were "doing something good." Id. at 18:8-21. On her visit, she "liked what [she] saw." Id. Mrs. Mee made a $1,000,000 gift to the Legion of Christ at that time. Id. at 18:22-19:5; see Pl.'s Ex. K (Ltr. from Mrs. Mee, Aug. 8, 1989). Mrs. Mee met with Father Maciel at the time of the visit. (Silvestre Dep. 44:10-45:6.)
In October of 1991, Mrs. Mee executed a new will that revoked all prior wills and codicils. Her 1991 Will directed ninety percent of her assets to the Legion of Christ and ten percent to Americans United for Life. See Defs.' Ex. 53.
In November of 1991, Mrs. Mee became a consecrated woman with the Legion of Christ. (Mee Dep. 22:14-17.) By that time, she resided at the Regnum Christi facility in Rhode Island. That same year, Mrs. Mee made a $3,000,000 gift to the Legion of Christ. Mr. and Mrs. Mee never had any children, although Mrs. Mee had seen a Catholic doctor about pregnancy and fertility issues. (Mee Dep. 22:24-23:13.) When Mrs. Mee moved into the Regnum Christi facility and became a consecrated woman, in her own words, "God's promise to the childless wife that she would be given a home and children to gladden her heart was fulfilled!" Mrs. Mee considered herself the grandmother and the young, consecrated women her grandchildren. (Mee Dep. 23:22-24:19.)
In 1993, Mrs. Mee learned that one of the two brothers in the Contemplatives was accused of soliciting sex from another male. (Silvestre Dep. 34:21-35:19, 86:24-88:11.) In response, Mrs. Mee withdrew her financial support of the Contemplatives and wanted to immediately evict them from her North Smithfield property that they were occupying. See id.
Later in 1993, Mrs. Mee deeded that North Smithfield property to the Legion of Christ. In January of 1994, Mrs. Mee amended the 1987 Gabrielle D. Mee Charitable Trust to change the beneficiary to the Legion of Christ. See Pl.'s Ex. G4.
In September of 1994, the Timothy J. Mee Foundation Trust was amended to benefit the Legion of Christ. See Pl.'s Ex. G2. The amendments changed the name to the Timothy J. Mee Charitable Trust, and changed the Trust purpose so as to "support exclusively the Legion of Christ . . . ." See id. The Trust provided that "should the said Legion ever . . . cease to be faithful to the Holy Father as determined by the Roman Pontiff or his designee, then the Trust shall be a supporting organization of Overbrook, Inc. . . . ." Id. If Overbrook ceased to be faithful to the Pope, then the Trust would become a supporting organization of Hombre NuevoRhode Island, Inc. See id. Likewise, if Hombre Nuevo ceased to be faithful to the Pope, then the Trust would become a supporting organization of Mater Ecclesiae, Inc. of Rhode Island. See id. Finally, if Mater Ecclesiae ceased to be faithful to the Pope, then the Trust would become a supporting organization of The Papal Foundation. See id. All of these beneficiaries were related...
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