In re Estate of Hendrix, No. 55711-4-I (Wash. App. 7/24/2006)
| Decision Date | 24 July 2006 |
| Docket Number | No. 55711-4-I,No. 55782-3-I Consolidated Cases,55711-4-I,55782-3-I Consolidated Cases |
| Court | Washington Court of Appeals |
| Parties | In re Estate of JAMES ALLEN HENDRIX, Deceased. In re the Matter of: THE REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST OF JAMES ALLEN HENDRIX, LEON HENDRIX, a married man, Plaintiff, v. JANIE HENDRIX, a married person, Defendant. LEON MORRIS HENDRIX, an individual, Appellant, v. ESTATE OF JAMES ALLEN HENDRIX and JANIE L. HENDRIX, personal representative, Respondent. |
Appeal from Superior Court of King County. Docket No. 02-4-02569-0. Judgment or order under review. Date filed: 01/14/2005. Judge signing: Hon. Jeffrey M Ramsdell.
Counsel for Appellant(s), Leontine L. Hendrix (Appearing Pro Se)
Leanne Hendrix-Barer (Appearing Pro Se), 13327 28th Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98125.
Jason J.J. Hendrix (Appearing Pro Se)
James J. Hendrix (Appearing Pro Se), Stafford Creek Correctional Facility, 191 Constantine Way, Aberdeen, WA 98520.
Jonnelle M. Hendrix (Appearing Pro Se), c/o George Narancic, 1800 N.E. 65th Street, Seattle, WA 98115.
Counsel for Respondent(s), Jill Diane Bowman, Stoel Rives LLP, 600 University St Ste 3600, Seattle, WA 98101-3197
J Ronald Sim, Stoel Rives LLP, 600 University St Ste 3600, Seattle, WA 98101-3197.
Shilpa Bhatia, Wilson Smith Cochran Dickerson, 1215 4th Ave Ste 1700, Seattle, WA 98161-1010.
John Donahue Jr Wilson, Wilson Smith Cochran Dickerson, 1215 4th Ave Ste 1700, Seattle, WA 98161-1010.
Robert J. Curran, Ryan Swanson & Cleveland PLLC, 1201 3rd Ave Ste 3400, Seattle, WA 98101-3034.
Lance L Losey, Ryan Swanson & Cleveland PLLC, 1201 3rd Ave Ste 3400, Seattle, WA 98101-3034.
Jesse Andrew Wing, MacDonald Hoague & Bayless, 705 2nd Ave Ste 1500, Seattle, WA 98104-1745.
David Robert Osgood, Law Office of David Osgood PS, 1411 4th Ave Ste 1506, Seattle, WA 98101-2247.
Willie Jinka (Appearing Pro Se), 15329 52nd W. Edmonds, WA 98043.
Marsha Lake (Appearing Pro Se), 18521 SE Timberlake Blvd., Kent, WA 98042.
Donna Jinka-O'kert (Appearing Pro Se), P.O. Box 78416, Seattle, WA 98178.
Robert Lee Hall Jr. (Appearing Pro Se), 3151 NE 16th St #211, Renton, WA 98056.
Legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix's father Al Hendrix died in 2002, providing nothing in his will for his son Leon other than one of Jimi's gold records. Al's will left substantial amounts to his daughter Janie and his nephew Robert and also provided for other family members.
Leon contested the will on the grounds that, inter alia, it was the product of Janie's undue influence over Al. The trial court found that there were circumstances giving rise to a presumption of undue influence, but that Janie rebutted this presumption. Because Leon failed to prove undue influence by clear, cogent, and convincing evidence, the trial court found the will to be valid and binding. Leon now appeals on many grounds, his primary contention being that the trial court applied the incorrect burden of proof on the undue influence issue.
Leon also brought a claim for interference with an inheritance expectancy, a tort which had not previously been recognized in Washington, and the trial court dismissed the claim on summary judgment. Leon appeals the summary judgment, arguing that this court should extend Washington's recognition of interference with economic expectancies to include inheritance expectancies.
We conclude that the trial court applied the correct burden of proof during the will contest and that none of Leon's other claims warrant reversal, thereby affirming the validity of Al's will. We decline to adopt the tort of interference with an inheritance expectancy on the facts of this case, given that Leon's tort claim arises out of the same nucleus of facts as his will contest and his allegations are duplicative.
James Allen Hendrix was born on June 10, 1919, and was known as `Al.'1 Al met Lucille Jeter in 1941, when he was 22 and Lucille was 15. Lucille became pregnant and thereafter married Al. Jimi was born in November 1942. Another son, Leon, was born to Lucille in January 1948. Although Al is listed on Leon's birth certificate as his father, Al told many people (including one of his biographers) that Leon was not his biological child, and that Leon's father was an acquaintance of his.
Al and Lucille divorced in 1951, and Al was granted custody of Jimi and Leon. Leon was placed in a series of foster homes, but continued to have contact with Al and Jimi. Al worked as a gardener, supporting his family on modest means. Al had dropped out of school in seventh grade, and his reading comprehension was between a fourth- and seventh-grade level. At 18, Jimi joined the armed services and never lived at home again.
Al married Ayako Jinka, who was known as `June,' in 1966. June had five children at the time she married Al, and Al adopted one of these children, Janie. When Al and June married, Janie was five years old. In February 1968, Jimi returned to Seattle to play with his band the Jimi Hendrix Experience and met June and Janie for the first time. Jimi died in 1970 without a will, and his estate was administered under New York laws of intestate succession. Lucille had predeceased Jimi, and Al received 100 percent of Jimi's estate. Al continued to work as a gardener after Jimi's death.
From the time of Jimi's death until the early 1990s, Al was represented by attorney Leo Branton, who handled all of Al's business affairs. Branton would provide Al with a $50,000 stipend per year and provide additional money whenever Al requested it. Al was generous with his money and helped his family members pay for cars and down payments on homes, and he also provided Janie, Leon, and others with monthly allowances. Leon and Janie told Al many times that Branton was not paying Al the full amount he was due, but Al dismissed their complaints without investigation. Al was not interested in the complicated administration of Jimi's estate or intellectual property rights and was satisfied with Branton's management.
Leon married in 1974 and he and his wife have six children. Leon is now separated from his wife. Leon has not been steadily employed since 1979, but has worked as an artist and musician intermittently. In 1992, he told Rolling Stone magazine that Al Finding of Fact 39.
Later in 1992, Branton sent a letter to Leon and Janie on behalf of Al asking to purchase their contingent reversionary copyright interests in Jimi's music. Branton explained that, under copyright law, copyrights revert to their original owners after 28 years. He also explained that Al had sold Jimi's copyrights years before in exchange for an annuity and requested that Leon and Janie agree to waive their contingent reversionary rights to Jimi's copyrights in exchange for $300,000 cash and a $700,000 trust for their respective children.
Leon signed the agreement, but Janie refused. Janie retained attorney O. Yale Lewis of the Hendricks & Lewis firm to advise her regarding the agreement. Lewis investigated the agreement and came to believe that Jimi's estate was more valuable than Branton was representing. Lewis shared this belief with Al, and Al retained Lewis to investigate how Branton had handled Jimi's musical legacy.
Lewis also believed that Al should execute a new will because Branton had drafted his prior will and Branton's trustworthiness was now being investigated. Lewis realized, however, that there might be a conflict of interest if he drafted the will, so he recommended Al contact Jonathan Whetzel about drafting a new will. Al signed a new will in 1993, and the principal beneficiaries of this will were June, Leon, Janie, and Leon and Janie's respective children.
Later in 1993, Al sued Branton, claiming, inter alia, breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. Janie was instrumental in this litigation, and she actively participated in all stages of the suit and its eventual settlement. Because Al had difficulty reading, Janie and others read litigation documents aloud to Al and discussed the contents of the documents with him.
In 1994, Al executed a second will, also drafted by Whetzel. This will left 38 percent of Al's estate to June in a marital trust. Janie received 38 percent also, 19 percent outright and 19 percent in a trust. Leon and his children received 24 percent in trust. On June's death, the remainder of the marital trust was divided between nine people. June's children (other than Janie) received one-seventh each; Al's niece Diane and nephew Robert each received one-seventh; and Al's sister-in-law Pearl Brown and niece Grace Hatcher received one-fourteenth each. This will also contemplated the creation of a family-owned company to hold the Hendrix legacy, and each of the beneficiaries was to receive a share in the company according to his or her percentage interest in Al's estate. Most of these interests would be owned outright rather than through trusts, and no single heir was to have a controlling interest.
In 1995, Leon was deposed as part of the litigation against Branton. He stated in his deposition that he had been estranged from Al since he was 17 and that he did not care about what Al had provided for him in his will. When asked whether he knew that Al was bequeathing all of Jimi's memorabilia to Janie, Leon expressed relief and stated that he would not have taken care of it if Al had bequeathed it to him.
The litigation against Branton was settled in 1995, with Al's ownership of Jimi's music legacy regained by repurchase for $8.5 million. The settlement was originally contingent upon an agreement to form a joint venture with Music Corporation of America (MCA), whereby MCA would pay Al $40 million for a 50 percent ownership interest in Jimi's music and an exclusive distribution arrangement. Al rejected that venture in favor of a plan that enabled the Hendrix family to retain...
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