IN RE CONSERVATORSHIP OF ESTATE OF LOYD

• Citation: 868 So.2d 363
• Decision Date: 28 October 2003
• Docket Number: No. 2002-CA-00054-COA.,2002-CA-00054-COA.
• Parties: In re the Matter of the CONSERVATORSHIP OF the ESTATE and the Person OF Annie Mae LOYD. Margaret Loyd Lang And Clyde Lang, Appellant, v. Edith Cecille Loyd Lutz, Conservatrix, Appellee.
• Court: Court of Appeals of Mississippi

868 So.2d 363

In re the Matter of the CONSERVATORSHIP OF the ESTATE and the Person OF Annie Mae LOYD.

Margaret Loyd Lang And Clyde Lang, Appellant, v. Edith Cecille Loyd Lutz, Conservatrix, Appellee.

No. 2002-CA-00054-COA.

Court of Appeals of Mississippi.

October 28, 2003.

Rehearing Denied January 6, 2004.

Certiorari Denied March 11, 2004.

William D. Boerner, Brookhaven, attorney for appellant.

Sim C. Dulaney, Port Gibson, attorney for appellee.

Before McMILLIN, C.J., THOMAS and CHANDLER, JJ.

THOMAS, J., for the Court.

¶ 1. This case involves a dispute between sisters over their mother and her estate. The trial court ruled against the appellants, Margaret Loyd Lang and Clyde Lang. Aggrieved, Margaret perfected an appeal to this Court and asserts the following issues:

I. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY FINDING THAT APPELLANT MARGARET LANG PROCURED HER OFFICE OF TRUST THROUGH UNDUE INFLUENCE AND FURTHER ERRED BY REMOVING HER AS TRUSTEE.

II. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY FINDING THE TEMPORARY SUPPORT TO BE UNREASONABLE.

III. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY FINDING APPELLANT LANG TO HAVE VIOLATED HER FIDUCIARY DUTIES AS TRUSTEE.

IV. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY ORDERING AN ACCOUNTING.

V. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY CANCELING THE WARRANTY DEED FROM APPELLANT MARGARET LANG TO APPELLANT CLYDE LANG.

VI. THE CHANCELLOR ERRED BY DISMISSING APPELLANT CLYDE LANG'S COUNTER-COMPLAINT FOR SLANDER OF TITLE AND ASSESSING COURT COSTS TO THE APPELLANTS.

Finding no error, we affirm.

FACTS

¶ 2. Annie Mae Loyd was born in April 1908, and at the time of appeal was ninety-two years old. She had been married to Vernon Loyd who died in 1956. Besides Annie, five children survived Vernon: Vernon Loyd, Jr., Margaret Elizabeth Loyd Lang, Edith Cecille Loyd Lutz, Charles Loyd and William Gerrard Loyd. The youngest, William Gerrard Loyd, passed away in 1992. From late 1965 on, Margaret was a co-signer on her mother Annie's bank accounts. Margaret assisted Annie with her business dealings from that time forward.

¶ 3. When Vernon Loyd, Sr. died, he owned two tracts of land: a fifty-six acre tract which he owned together with Annie Mae Loyd with full rights of survivorship, and a forty acre tract which was titled in his name alone. The forty acre tract passed to Annie and the children, share and share alike. At the request of Annie, all of the children except Margaret signed a quit claim deed conveying the forty acre tract to their mother. The quit claim deed was filed without Margaret's signature on May 10, 1988. From about 1986 until 1998, Annie lived in a trailer purchased for her by her daughter Edith Lutz. Although Annie Mae Loyd contributed to the purchase price by giving a down payment of $1,700, the monthly payments on the trailer were made by Edith and her husband.

¶ 4. In 1992, Clyde and Margaret Lang had attorney Scott Farnsworth prepare living trusts for them. In 1993, Vernon Loyd, Jr., having noticed a change in Annie including forgetfulness and hallucinations, suggested to Margaret that a trust should be established to take care of her. On May 17,1993, Clyde and Margaret Lang transported Annie to attorney Farnsworth's office for the purpose of establishing the Annie Mae Loyd Trust. Margaret Lang attended the meeting between Annie Mae Loyd and Farnsworth, then Farnsworth met with Annie Mae Loyd alone for approximately fifteen minutes. Over the next week, Farnsworth drafted the "Declaration of the Annie Mae Loyd Trust, Memorandum of Agreement of Annie Mae Loyd Trust, Last Will and Testament of Annie Mae Loyd, Medical Care Power of Attorney, Living Will, and General Power of Attorney." Additionally, Farnsworth prepared a quit claim deed which conveyed all of Annie Mae Loyd's real property to Margaret Lang as trustee for the Annie Mae Loyd Trust. On May 24, 1993, Margaret Lang again transported Annie Mae Loyd to Farnsworth's office for the purpose of executing the trust documents. Margaret Lang was present when all of the trust documents were executed.

¶ 5. Annie Mae Loyd's last will and testament provides that, after payment of expenses, all of her property was given and devised to the trustee of the Annie Mae Loyd Trust, to be held and disposed of in accordance with the terms, covenants and conditions of the trust. The declaration of trust of the Annie Mae Loyd Trust provides that upon Annie's death, any remaining principal, together with any accrued and unpaid income thereon, shall be paid and distributed as follows: $1,000 to be divided among the issue of William G. Loyd, per stirpes, and the residue to Margaret Lang, Vernon W. Loyd, Edith Cecille Loyd Lutz and Charles Ronald Loyd, equally. The declaration of trust of the Annie Mae Loyd Trust appoints Margaret Lang as trustee, and upon her death or if she should cease to serve, appoints Vernon W. Loyd, Cecille Lutz, and Charles Ronald Loyd, in that order, as successive trustees. Margaret Lang testified that no copies of any of these documents were ever furnished any of Mrs. Loyd's other children because Annie Mae Loyd was a very secretive person who did not want the other children to know her business.

¶ 6. In early 1995, Margaret's husband Clyde, after receiving bids, sold some of the timber on his land to Dixieland Forest Products of Meridian, Mississippi. Margaret Lang, as trustee, thereafter sold the standing timber belonging to the Annie Mae Loyd Trust to Dixieland Timber Products. Clyde Lang initialed the contract between Dixieland Forest Products and the Annie Mae Loyd Trust. He also authorized Dixieland Forest Products to clear cut the timber on the Annie Mae Loyd Trust property. Dixieland Forest Products sent the payment for Annie Mae Loyd Trust's timber to Clyde Lang who delivered the checks to Margaret Lang. Theses checks were later endorsed by Annie Mae Loyd and Margaret Lang.

¶ 7. On April 21, 1995, Margaret Lang deposited two Dixieland Forest Product checks for timber cut on the Annie Mae Loyd Trust property in the amounts of $11,222.99, and 11,079.92, together with a sum of $2,999.51, withdrawn from Annie Mae Loyd's savings account, into an account in the name of Margaret Elizabeth Loyd Lang. The total sum deposited was $26,302.42. Margaret Lang then used this money to purchase a certificate of deposit in her name. Margaret Lang held this CD for more than three years. In February 1998, Annie moved in with Margaret and Clyde and Edith sold the trailer in which Annie resided. On November 18, 1998, Margaret Lang redeemed the CD, before maturity, and after making deductions for other expenses, including $50 to Farnsworth, withheld for herself $14,400. The CD at the time of redemption was worth $32,428.62. The invoice prepared to account for the $14,400 payment indicated that it was for costs of caring for her mother at $1,200 per month for one year. After these deductions Margaret deposited $16,204.62 into the Annie Mae Loyd Trust account.

¶ 8. On September 30, 1998, Margaret Lang, as trustee, conveyed all of the real estate owned by the Annie Mae Loyd Trust to her husband, Clyde Lang. Two estimates were obtained, and the higher was used for valuing the property. The deed transferring this property was prepared by Farnsworth, and the sale price of the property, $64,000, was paid by check drawn on the joint account of Mr. E. Lang and Elizabeth L. Lang. The check was signed by (Margaret) Elizabeth Lang and endorsed by (Margaret) Elizabeth Loyd Lang, trustee of the Annie Mae Loyd Trust.

¶ 9. Trustee Margaret Lang testified that the reasons she sold the land to her husband included: (1) Mrs. Loyd was tired of being "harassed" by her other children. This harassment was punctuated by the allegation that Mrs. Loyd's daughter, Edith Lutz, was repeatedly asking for her inheritance. Mrs. Lutz denies ever demanding her inheritance; (2) Annie Mae Loyd was upset after February 1998 when Edith Lutz sold the trailer that Annie had previously resided in, without reimbursing her for her share of the purchase price; and (3) Annie Mae Loyd requested Clyde Lang to purchase the property in order to allow him to invest his money in the property and to make it productive.

¶ 10. Edith Cecille Loyd Lutz, Margaret's sister, became upset with the management of the trust, and filed a petition for appointment of conservator which was granted by the lower court. Margaret filed a motion to set aside and an order was entered which appointed Margaret and Edith co-conservatrixes. This created a dispute which led to litigation. Testimony at trial established that Annie suffered from hallucinations and some form of dementia from as early as 1993, with some testimony indicating as early as 1989. After hearing the evidence, the chancellor found in part that Margaret had violated her fiduciary duty as trustee, that she should be removed as trustee, that a warranty deed from Margaret to her husband of real property contained in the trust should be cancelled, and ordered Margaret to make an accounting to the court and to reimburse the trust some $14,400.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

¶ 11. When considering the decisions of a chancellor on appeal, this Court has a limited standard of review. McNeil v. Hester, 753 So.2d 1057(¶ 21) (Miss.2000). "The chancellor, as the trier of fact, evaluates the sufficiency of the proof based on the credibility of witnesses and the weight of their testimony." Fisher v. Fisher, 771 So.2d 364(¶ 8) (Miss.2000). The chancellor is the fact-finder and is charged with the obligation of resolving disputes between the parties and likewise is the sole arbiter of the credibility of the witnesses. Murphy v. Murphy, 631 So.2d 812, 815 (Miss. 1994). A chancellor's findings of fact will not be disturbed unless they are manifestly wrong or clearly erroneous, or where it is determined that the chancellor applied an erroneous legal standard. Tinnin v. First United Bank, 570 So.2d 1193, 1194 (Miss.1990). If the chancellor's findings are supported by substantial, credible evidence in the record, this Court...