In re Taylor
| Decision Date | 07 July 2015 |
| Docket Number | No. COA15–159.,COA15–159. |
| Citation | 774 S.E.2d 863,242 N.C.App. 30 |
| Court | North Carolina Court of Appeals |
| Parties | In the Matter of Frances Sorrentino TAYLOR, Deceased. |
Ward and Smith, P.A., Wilmington, by Alexander C. Dale and Jeremy M. Wilson, for petitioners-appellees.
Sharon A. Keyes, for respondent-appellant.
Pamela Blackmore ("Blackmore") appeals from the trial court's order vacating a prior order entered by the clerk of court regarding the estate of Frances Sorrentino Taylor ("the Estate"). On appeal, Blackmore argues that the trial court erred in (1) upholding the executor's denial of her request for reimbursement for the expenses from the decedent's funeral; and (2) determining that certain attorneys' fees and expenses incurred by Richard E. Taylor, II ("Taylor") in his capacity as executor were payable by the Estate. After careful review, we affirm in part and vacate and remand in part.
Frances Sorrentino Taylor ("the decedent") died on 5 May 2012 and was survived by her four children: Taylor, Sharon Taylor Dixon ("Dixon"), Frances Lynn Taylor Stoller ("Stoller"), and Blackmore—all beneficiaries of the Estate. The decedent's last will and testament was filed for probate with the Cumberland County Clerk of Court, and Taylor qualified as executor of the Estate on 14 May 2012. Taylor published a notice to creditors on four successive weeks as required by statute on 19 May 2012, 26 May 2012, 2 June 2012, and 9 June 2012, requiring creditors to submit their claims on or before 19 August 2012.
On 7 August 2012, Blackmore submitted a timely claim against the Estate seeking payment of $18,480.00 for caretaking services she provided to the decedent prior to her death. No other claims were submitted by Blackmore at that time. Following the rejection of her claim by Taylor, Blackmore filed a lawsuit ("the Care Services Action") in Cumberland County Superior Court against the Estate, and Taylor retained Ward and Smith, P.A. ("Ward and Smith"), a law firm, to represent the Estate in that litigation and to provide general assistance regarding the administration of the Estate. The Honorable C. Winston Gilchrist granted summary judgment in the Estate's favor in the Care Services Action by order entered 23 July 2013, and Blackmore's action against the Estate was dismissed with prejudice. Subsequently, on 19 November 2013, the Honorable James G. Bell entered an order in that action (1) determining that "[t]he Estate has incurred reasonable attorneys' fees, costs, and expenses in this matter in the total amount of Thirty–Four Thousand Three Hundred Sixteen and 86/100 Dollars ($34,316.86)"; (2) concluding that Blackmore's complaint against the Estate was frivolous and that Blackmore should have known that the complaint "had no justiciable issues"; and (3) ordering Blackmore, pursuant to N.C. Gen.Stat. § 6–21.5, to "pay to the Estate in reimbursement of its reasonable attorneys' fees, costs, and expenses the total amount of $500.00."
On 17 July 2013, Blackmore filed a "Request for Reimbursement from Decedent's Estate," seeking $15,742.30 in reimbursement for funeral expenses that had been paid from Blackmore's and Dixon's joint bank account. This account was a deposit account with a right of survivorship that named the decedent, Blackmore, and Dixon as joint owners. On 23 September 2013, Taylor filed a petition asking the Clerk of Court to disallow Blackmore's request for reimbursement with regard to the funeral expenses and allow him to "move forward with paying final estate administration expenses, making final distributions to beneficiaries, and closing the Estate." In his petition, Taylor alleged that Blackmore's reimbursement claim against the Estate was time-barred and stated that "to the extent a formal response is required ... Taylor hereby notifies Blackmore that the Claim is absolutely and unequivocally rejected, disallowed and denied." The Estate further noted its understanding that the joint account consisted solely of funds contributed by the decedent.
A proposed final account for the Estate was filed on 2 January 2014, which included disbursements from the Estate to pay legal fees and expenses for which Ward and Smith had submitted invoices. The proposed final account and the attached disbursements report indicated that the total amount of attorneys' fees and expenses sought was $91,340.77. This sum included $16,927.67 in attorneys' fees and expenses for probate matters, $35,150.85 in attorneys' fees and expenses for litigation matters, and $39,262.22 in attorneys' fees and expenses that were not specifically designated as being for probate-related or litigation-related matters. Blackmore filed an objection to the final account on 31 January 2014, in which she (1) challenged the Estate's failure to reimburse her for the funeral expenses; and (2) asserted that the amount of attorneys' fees charged by Ward and Smith for probate and litigation matters was "excessive."
A hearing was held before Assistant Clerk of Court Cindy Fullerton ("the Clerk") on 13 May 2014. The Clerk entered an order on 9 June 2014 (1) granting reimbursement to Blackmore for the funeral expenses; (2) approving only $26,211.31 of the requested attorneys' fees as a valid expense of the Estate and denying the remainder; and (3) ordering that a final account be submitted within 30 days of the entry of her order. Taylor, in his capacity as executor, and Stoller, Dixon, and Taylor, as beneficiaries (collectively "Appellees"), appealed the Clerk's order to Cumberland County Superior Court. Simultaneously, the Clerk sealed the records containing detailed invoices from the Estate's counsel based on the fact that confidential attorney-client information was contained therein.
The matter came on for hearing before the Honorable Beecher R. Gray on 22 September 2014. On 20 October 2014, Judge Gray entered an order vacating the Clerk's order, denying Blackmore's claim for reimbursement for the funeral expenses, and ordering that the full amount of the legal fees and expenses for which payment had been sought be paid by the Estate. The trial court further ordered Taylor to submit a final account to the Clerk within 45 days of the entry of its order. Blackmore filed a timely appeal to this Court.
Upon appeal to superior court of an order entered by a clerk of court concerning an estate matter, the superior court's review is limited solely to determining the following:
N.C. Gen.Stat. § 1–301.3(d) (2013). "The standard of review in this Court is the same as that in the Superior Court." In re Estate of Monk, 146 N.C.App. 695, 697, 554 S.E.2d 370, 371 (2001), disc. review denied, 355 N.C. 212, 559 S.E.2d 805 (2002). "Errors of law are reviewed de novo. " In re Estate of Mullins, 182 N.C.App. 667, 671, 643 S.E.2d 599, 602 (citation and quotation marks omitted), disc. review denied, 361 N.C. 693, 652 S.E.2d 262 (2007).
On appeal to this Court, Blackmore argues that the trial court "went beyond its jurisdictional authority" in setting aside the Clerk's order. Specifically, she contends that the trial court erred, and exceeded its limited power of review, in vacating the Clerk's order regarding both her funeral expenses claim and the amount of the legal fees and expenses payable by the Estate. We address each of these issues in turn.
Blackmore first argues that the trial court erred in denying her claim for reimbursement of the funeral expenses because (1) the court improperly replaced the Clerk's findings and conclusions on this issue with its own; and (2) the claim was supported by evidence of record and authorized by applicable law.
It is well established that a clerk of court has original jurisdiction in probate matters. See N.C. Gen.Stat. § 28A–2–1 (2013) (). When a party appeals a judgment or order entered by the clerk of court to the superior court, "the trial court sits as an appellate court." In re Estate of Mangum, 212 N.C.App. 211, 212, 713 S.E.2d 18, 19–20 (2011). Where sufficient evidence exists to support the clerk of court's findings, the trial judge cannot substitute his own findings for those of the clerk. In re Estate of Swinson, 62 N.C.App. 412, 415, 303 S.E.2d 361, 363 (1983) ().
In the present case, the trial court concluded that the Clerk erred in ordering the Estate to pay $15,742.30 in funeral expenses because the claim was time-barred. Specifically, the trial court ruled that Blackmore's funeral expenses claim did not comply with N.C. Gen.Stat. § 28A–19–3, which governs the presentation of claims against an estate and sets out the applicable deadline for submitting such claims. The trial court also ruled that the funeral expenses claim was likewise time-barred under N.C. Gen.Stat. § 28A–19–16 because Blackmore failed to commence a civil action within three months of receiving notice from Taylor of his rejection of her claim. We agree with the trial court on both counts.
Under N.C. Gen.Stat. § 28A–19–3, claims against a decedent's estate that arise at or after the death of the decedent that are not based on a contract with the personal representative become "forever barred against the estate" if not brought within six months of the date on which the claim arose. N.C. Gen.Stat. § 28A–19–3(b)(2) (2013). Here, the funeral expenses were paid in May of 201...
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