Lester v. Nationstar Mortg., LLC.

• Decision Date: 20 December 2016
• Docket Number: WD 79573
• Citation: 505 S.W.3d 843
• Parties: David Wayne LESTER, Appellant, v. NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE, LLC., et al., Respondents.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

505 S.W.3d 843

David Wayne LESTER, Appellant,

v.NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE, LLC., et al., Respondents.

WD 79573

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

Filed: December 20, 2016

Aldo P. Caller, Overland Park, for appellant.

Benjamin F. Mann and Christopher C. Miles, Kansas City, for respondents.

Before Division Two: Lisa White Hardwick, Presiding Judge, Karen King Mitchell and Anthony Rex Gabbert, Judges

Lisa White Hardwick, Judge

David Wayne Lester ("Lester") appeals from the summary judgment in favor of Nationstar Mortgage, LLC ("Nationstar"), on his petition to quiet title. He contends the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment because the court applied the wrong statute and failed to adjudicate the rights of the parties to the deed of trust contract. For reasons explained herein, we affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On July 31, 2007, Lester's mother, Bonita J. Lester ("Bonita"),¹ acquired property in Lake Lotawana ("the property"). Bonita executed a deed of trust in favor of Pinnacle Bank as security for a note she executed. At the same time, Bonita executed a beneficiary deed on the property in favor of her sons, Lester and Craig Daniel Lester. The deed of trust and beneficiary deed were recorded.

In March 2008, Pinnacle Bank executed a deed of release in favor of Bonita and released its deed of trust. Bonita executed a new deed of trust in favor of Bank of America, N.A., on the property. The new deed of trust was recorded.

Bonita died on July 3, 2012. On August 22, 2012, Lester, Lester's wife, Craig Daniel Lester, and his wife executed a warranty deed that purported to grant all of their interest in the property to Lester. The warranty deed was recorded. In April 2013, Bank of America assigned its deed of trust on the property to Nationstar by an assignment of mortgage/deed of trust, which was recorded.

In September 2013, fourteen months after Bonita's death, Lester filed a petition to quiet title to the property. In his petition, Lester asserted, among other things, that the underlying debt on the property was extinguished because no estate was opened and Nationstar did not apply to open an estate within one year of Bonita's death. Lester asserted that, by virtue of the beneficiary deed that Bonita had executed and the warranty deed that he, his brother, and their wives had executed, he was now the sole owner of the property, free of any right or interest of Nationstar. Lester requested that the court enter a judgment establishing him as the sole, exclusive owner of the property in fee simple absolute; enjoining Nationstar from conducting or attempting to conduct any foreclosure sale of his property; declaring that his property is not subject to Nationstar's mortgage, lien, or any other interest, charge or debt; and awarding him costs.

In response, Nationstar filed a motion for summary judgment. In support of its motion, Nationstar argued that it had a valid deed of trust and that the lien on the property created by the deed of trust survived Bonita's death. Nationstar asserted that, pursuant to Section 473.360,² the time limit for filing claims against estates does not apply to actions to enforce mortgages or other liens on estate property and that a creditor who has a security interest in decedent's property does not have to file a claim against the estate to enforce the security interest. Additionally, Nationstar argued that the property would not have even been part of Bonita's estate anyway because it was transferred, by operation of law, under the beneficiary deed to Lester and his brother upon Bonita's death. Nationstar contended that, pursuant to the nonprobate transfers law, when Lester and his brother took Bonita's interest in the property via the beneficiary deed, they took her interest subject to any liens and security interests she made during her lifetime.

The court granted Nationstar's motion for summary judgment. Lester appeals.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

Appellate review of a summary judgment is essentially de novo . ITT Commercial Fin. Corp. v. Mid – Am. Marine Supply Corp. , 854 S.W.2d 371, 376 (Mo. banc 1993). We review the record in the light most favorable to party against whom the judgment was entered. Wills v. Whitlock , 139 S.W.3d 643, 646 (Mo. App. 2004).

"Summary judgment is appropriate when the moving party has demonstrated, on the basis of facts as to which there is no genuine dispute, a right to judgment as a matter of law." Roberts v. BJC Health Sys. , 391 S.W.3d 433, 437 (Mo. banc 2013). The defendant establishes the right to judgment as a matter of law by showing one of the following:

(1) facts negating any one of the claimant's elements necessary for judgment; (2) that the claimant, after an adequate period of discovery, has not been able to—and will not be able to—produce evidence sufficient to allow the trier of fact to find the existence of one of the claimant's elements; or (3) facts necessary to support his properly pleaded affirmative defense.

Id. We will affirm a summary judgment under any theory supported by the record. Id.

ANALYSIS

This is an appeal from a summary judgment on a petition to quiet title. A petition to quiet title is a statutory action that is appropriate "to determine the respective estates, titles, and interests of multiple people claiming an interest in land." Robson v. Diem , 317 S.W.3d 706, 712 (Mo. App. 2010). "A quiet title action is not designed to adjudicate the plaintiff's title as superior to the whole world, but only as compared to the other parties." Fairdealing Apostolic Church, Inc. v. Casinger , 353 S.W.3d 396, 400 (Mo. App. 2011) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).

Section 527.150.1, the quiet title statute, provides:

Any person claiming any title, estate or interest in real property, whether the same be legal or equitable, certain or contingent, present or in reversion, or remainder, whether in possession or not, may institute an action against any person or persons having or claiming to have any title, estate or interest in such property, whether in possession or not, to ascertain and determine the estate, title and interest of said parties, respectively, in such real estate, and to define and adjudge by its judgment or decree the title, estate and interest of the parties severally in and to such real property.

This " ‘statute is remedial in nature and is to be liberally construed.’ " Robson , 317 S.W.3d at 712 (citation omitted). The party bringing the quiet title action has the burden of establishing superior title, and "he must ‘prevail on the strength of [his] own title and not on any weakness in the title of the other party.’ " Id. (citation omitted).

In its judgment, the court found that Lester was not entitled to quiet title relief against Nationstar based upon Section 473.360. Subsection 1 of Section 473.360 provides, in pertinent part, that claims against the estate of deceased persons that are not filed within six months after the date of the first published notice of letters testamentary or of administration are forever barred. However, subsection 3 of Section 473.360 specifically states that "[n]othing in this section affects or prevents any action or proceeding to enforce any mortgage, pledge or other lien upon property of the estate." Because Section 473.360.3 expressly excludes actions to enforce mortgages and liens on property, the court found that the time limit for filing claims against...