Deloch v. Hughes

Decision Date21 March 1995
Docket NumberNo. 66343,66343
PartiesMarvell DELOCH and Margo Hegwood, Appellants, v. Edye Lynn HUGHES, Respondent.
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals

James Edward Terry, St. Louis, for appellants.

James R. Dankenbring, St. Louis, for respondent.

CARL R. GAERTNER, Judge.

Marvell Deloch and Margo Hegwood appeal from the trial court's judgment concerning Deloch's petition to partition real estate located in St. Louis and Hegwood's claim for the imposition of an equitable lien on the real estate.

Appeal dismissed.

On October 11, 1956, Marvell and Jessie Deloch were married. They had one child, Edye Hughes, born on January 18, 1959. They separated in December 1962, and Jessie maintained custody of Hughes. In 1984, Jessie purchased a home located at 2818 Abner Place in St. Louis. 1 She then permitted Deloch to occupy the property in exchange for his agreement to pay $200.00 per month in rent and the taxes and maintenance costs for the property. Deloch occupied the premises and upheld his agreement to make the requisite payments until Jessie's death.

Jessie died intestate on May 26, 1985, leaving Deloch and Hughes as her only surviving heirs. At the time of her death, Jessie resided in Cook County, Illinois, and she held fee simple title to the Abner property.

On May 28, 1985, Deloch executed under oath a disclaimer in Cook County, Illinois, in which he waived all interest in Jessie's estate in favor of Hughes. The disclaimer specifically included the Abner property and the proceeds from Jessie's life insurance policy and pension. In exchange for the disclaimer, Hughes agreed to permit Deloch to occupy the Abner property without paying rent. Deloch has not paid rent on the property since June 1985.

Jessie failed to designate a beneficiary to the proceeds of her insurance policy. Deloch advised Hughes to assign all of Jessie's insurance proceeds to him to expedite their distribution. He agreed to transfer the proceeds to Hughes upon receiving them. In November 1985, Deloch received $107,000.00 in proceeds from Jessie's insurance but only gave Hughes $1,000.00. Additionally, Deloch has received all of Jessie's federal pension checks since 1986. Also, in 1988 Hegwood began living with Deloch at the Abner property.

On August 21, 1991, Deloch filed in the Circuit Court of St. Louis a petition for partition of the Abner property. Hughes filed an answer and counterclaim. On February 13, 1992, Hegwood was joined as a plaintiff to the underlying action, and she filed a claim seeking the imposition of a $20,000.00 equitable lien on the Abner property for alleged improvements she made on the property.

The case was tried without a jury on November 15, 1993. On December 14, 1993, the trial court entered its findings of fact, conclusions of law and order in which it: (1) ordered that Hegwood's equitable lien claim be denied; (2) declared that Deloch and Hughes were the owners of the Abner property as tenants in common; (3) ordered that the Abner property be partitioned, the proceeds be distributed equally to Deloch and Hughes and the parties be prohibited from purchasing the realty; and (4) awarded Hughes $20,400.00 in equitable relief. This appeal followed.

Appellants' statement of facts ignores the requirements of Rule 84.04(c), which provides that an appellant's brief must contain a "fair and concise statement of the facts relevant to the questions presented for determination without argument." The purpose of the statement of facts is to set forth an immediate, accurate, complete and unbiased understanding of the facts of the case. In re Marriage of Lowe, 860 S.W.2d 813, 815 (Mo.App.1993); White v. White, 846 S.W.2d 212, 213 (Mo.App.1993). If this court is to adjudicate an appeal without becoming an advocate for the appellant, the appellant must define the scope of the controversy by stating fairly and concisely the relevant facts. White, 846 S.W.2d at 213. A violation of Rule 84.04(c) constitutes grounds for dismissal of an appeal. Id.

Appellants' statement of facts fails to contain a fair and concise statement of the facts relevant to the issues presented in this case. Appellants state that the underlying action was a partition claim, and they identify the parties and describe the parcel of property in question. The fact statement, however, is devoid of any chronology of the events which led to the controversy between the parties or of a concise summarization of the procedural history of the case. Moreover, the statement is replete with conclusory arguments concerning the trial court's rulings on motions, findings of fact and conclusions of law. The statement of facts contains references to statutes and sets forth Supreme Court Rules verbatim. It quotes nine of the trial court's findings and argues, without elucidation, that they are erroneous. The statement of facts should more appropriately be labeled argument. Appellants' statement of facts preserves nothing for appellate review. See Pemiscot County Memorial Hosp. v. Mo. Labor and Industrial Relations Com'n, 825 S.W.2d 61, 63 (Mo.App.1992).

Rule 84.04(d) requires that the points relied on must state briefly and concisely what actions or rulings of the court are sought to be reviewed and wherein and why they are claimed to be erroneous. A point relied on must contain the following components: (1) a concise statement of the challenged ruling or action of the trial court; (2) the rule of law which the court should have applied; and (3) the evidentiary basis upon which the asserted rule is applicable. Straeter Distributing v....

To continue reading

Request your trial
6 cases
  • Thompson v. Flagstar Bank, Fsb, SD 29866.
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • November 23, 2009
    ...an advocate for the appellant, the appellant must define the scope of the controversy ... fairly and concisely...." Deloch v. Hughes, 896 S.W.2d 668, 670 (Mo.App.1995). "`It is not the function of the appellate court to serve as advocate for any party to an appeal.'" Low v. State Dept. of C......
  • Kent v. Charlie Chicken, II, Inc., 70469
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • May 12, 1998
    ...for determination without argument. A violation of Rule 84.04(c) constitutes grounds for dismissal of an appeal. Deloch v. Hughes, 896 S.W.2d 668, 670 In this brief the statement of facts consists of three one-word headings, "Transaction", "Roof" and "Petition", each of which is followed by......
  • Woodard v. Beecham/Quest
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • October 24, 2000
    ...court and preserves nothing for review. See Kent v. Charlie Chicken, II, Inc., 972 S.W.2d 513, 517 (Mo. App. 1998); Deloch v. Hughes, 896 S.W.2d 668, 671 (Mo. App. 1995). This court should not be expected either to decide the case on the basis of inadequate briefing or to undertake addition......
  • Snyder v. Snyder
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • June 22, 2004
    ...of facts is to afford an immediate, accurate, complete and unbiased understanding of the facts of the case. Deloch v. Hughes, 896 S.W.2d 668, 670 (Mo. App. E.D.1995). In this brief, the statement of facts consists of a numbered list of one-sentence statements sometimes followed by a referen......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT