DeShazo v. Miller

• Decision Date: 27 May 1977
• Citation: 346 So.2d 423
• Parties: Manon DeSHAZO, III, et al. v. Helen DeShazo MILLER et al. SC 1525.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Page 423

346 So.2d 423

Manon DeSHAZO, III, et al. v. Helen DeShazo MILLER et al.

SC 1525.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

May 27, 1977.

S. Eason Balch, Jr., Balch, Bingham, Baker, Hawthorne, Williams & Ward, Birmingham, William E. Hereford, Jr., Gaines, Hereford & Cleckler, Pell City, for appellants.

J. Zack Higgs, Jr., Hornsby, Blankenship, Higgs, Smith & Robinson, Huntsville, for appellees.

SIMMONS, Retired Circuit Judge.

The plaintiffs below, who are the appellees here, filed two suits. One of the suits sought to have a sale and division of the lands in the estate of Clara George and the other sought to have a 45-acre tract of land which had been deeded to Manon DeShazo, Jr., declared to be a part of the estate. These cases were combined for trial and were heard ore tenus. This appeal only concerns the trial court's ruling that the deed which conveyed the 45 acres from Clara George to Manon DeShazo, Jr., should be set aside and the 45 acres considered to be part of the Clara George Estate.

The trial court's final decree provided in pertinent part as follows:

"The main issue in this case is the validity and effect of a deed made by one Clara George to her nephew, Manon DeShazo, Jr. on April 19, 1969. This deed is plaintiffs' or complainants' exhibit number 1. At the time this deed was made the said Clara George was some 77 or 78 years old and had been a patient in a nursing home for some six or seven years. Furthermore she was in the process of moving by necessity to a more expensive nursing home. She was also the owner of a valuable 45 acre tract of land which the said Manon DeShazo, Jr., as her agent, was about to lease to the A-B Realty Investment Company for a rather high rent. The rental income was to be so much that it would eliminate her pension paid by the Veterans Administration. It is agreed that Manon DeShazo, Jr., paid nothing for the land.

"This deed is a puzzle and both parties to it are now dead. But it seems inconceivable that an intelligent woman in her right mind would give away such valuable property at a time when she was confronted with the problems facing her.

"Without commenting on the Moral principles as far as the government is concerned, the Court intends no reflection on Manon DeShazo, Jr., as far as his dealings with his aunt are concerned, but the Court does find that the said deed was made under a trust arrangement to avoid the loss of Mrs. George's Veterans Administration pension. The entire arrangement is such that the Court can reach no other conclusion other than that Manon DeShazo, Jr. exerted undue influence upon his aunt Clara George, although his motives toward her, though mis-guided, may have been honorable.

"Had Mrs. George wanted to leave such valuable property to this one nephew, to the exclusion of the others, it could have been done by will. But under all of the evidence in this case the Court finds and holds that Manon DeShazo, Jr., took the property described in complainants' exhibit number 1 as trustee, and that said property is part of the Clara George estate and as such is subject to this proceeding."

After this ruling the defendants below, appellants here, moved for a judgment n. o. v. or in the alternative for a new trial. The denial of these motions is the basis upon which the appellants bring this appeal.

The appellants in this case are the widow and two children of Manon DeShazo, Jr. The appellees constitute all the heirs of Clara George, except for the two children of Manon DeShazo, Jr.

During the time relevant to this suit, Clara George was a widow with no living children or grandchildren. Her closest living relatives were the children of her brother, Manon DeShazo, and their children. It appears that Clara George had great affection for these nieces and nephews as well as for their children. As Clara George progressed in age and began to need the assistance of another in the management of her affairs she turned to her nephew, Manon DeShazo, Jr., who accepted the responsibility of seeing after her interests even though he resided in Tennessee and she in St. Clair County and Jefferson County in Alabama. Manon DeShazo, Jr., had a general power of attorney for Clara George, was listed jointly on her bank accounts, paid her bills, and in general managed her affairs.

On April 19, 1969, Clara George executed a deed which conveyed the 45 acres that is in dispute here to Manon DeShazo, Jr. On the day the deed was executed, Manon DeShazo, Jr., drove Clara George to the office of her long-time attorney and then left. Mrs. George conferred with her attorney, after which the lawyer directed his secretary to prepare a deed which was then signed by Mrs. George and witnessed. Shortly thereafter Manon DeShazo, Jr., arrived and the two left together. The deed was recorded on the same day. Apparently there was no monetary consideration paid by Manon DeShazo, Jr., for this property, which at that time was valued at $70,000.

Clara George was 78 years old when she conveyed this property and resided in a nursing home. Although she had suffered a stroke in 1963, the evidence tends to show that at the time of the conveyance she was mentally competent and completely aware of the nature of her act. Also, it appears that she was in good physical health for someone her age and that the reason she resided in a nursing home was due to convenience rather than necessity.

During this period of time, Clara George was receiving a monthly pension from the Veterans Administration in the amount of $108. In order to be entitled to this widow's pension Mrs. George could not have an annual income in excess of $2,000.

On May 1, 1969, Manon DeShazo, Jr. entered into a long-term lease agreement with A-B Realty Investment Co. whereby the 45 acres here involved were leased for use as a mobile home park. The lease agreement initially called for a monthly rental of $250 with the rental to increase during the term of the lease to a minimum of $500 a month.

Manon DeShazo, Jr., died of a heart attack in April of 1970. Article II of his last will and testament, which was prepared in July 1969, provided for a $200 monthly payment to Clara George for the rest of her life; the remainder of his estate was left to his wife and children.

Clara George died on July 1, 1971, and in her will she devised and bequeathed her estate to her five nieces and nephews or if they were deceased, to their children. The will named Manon DeShazo's widow as the executrix and the son of Manon DeShazo, Jr., as alternate executor. This will was prepared in December of 1970.

During the trial of this case, the trial court was continually called upon by the defendants to rule on the competency of some of the plaintiffs to testify to certain facts under the Alabama Deadman's Statute, Title 7, § 433, Alabama Code of 1940 (Recomp.1958).

This statute provides in pertinent part as follows:

"(N)o person having a pecuniary interest in the result of...