Parker v. Jordan
| Decision Date | 21 January 2021 |
| Docket Number | No. 08-19-00121-CV,08-19-00121-CV |
| Parties | Ola Kathleen PARKER, Independent Executor of the Estate of J. Loyd Parker, III, Deceased, Appellant, v. Michelle Elise Parker JORDAN and Allison Renee Parker, Appellees. |
| Court | Texas Court of Appeals |
Brittani W. Rollen, Fort Worth, Ryan Damiano, Burleson, George Haratsis, Fort Worth, Ken Slavin, El Paso, for Appellant.
Russell R. Barton, Roland K. Johnson, Fort Worth, J. Nathaniel James, for Appellees Parker, Allison Renee.
Steven C. Kiser, Harper Estes, Midland, for Appellees Michelle Elise Parker Jordan.
Before Rodriguez, C.J., Palafox, and Alley, JJ.
YVONNE T. RODRIGUEZ, Chief Justice This is a trespass-to-try-title and declaratory judgment action brought by Ola Kathleen Parker ("Kathy") against her daughters Michelle Elise Parker Jordan ("Elise") and Allison Renee Parker ("Allison") to resolve a dispute concerning the breadth of a conveyance in a 1998 Gift Deed, executed by J. Loyd Parker, III ("Loyd III") (Kathy's husband and father to Elise and Allison), prior to his 2014 death.
In four issues, Kathy contends the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Elise and denying Kathy's motion for summary judgment because: (1) the gift deed does not clearly and expressly convey the remainder interest at issue and the evidence conclusively established that Loyd III's intent was not to convey that interest in the gift deed; (2) alternatively, even if the remainder interest was mistakenly conveyed in the gift deed, Kathy is entitled to reform the language in the gift deed to reflect Loyd III's true intent, and Elise failed to establish as a matter of law that limitations barred Kathy's right to reformation; (3) Kathy raised a fact issue as to whether Elise was estopped from claiming the remainder interest because for 18 years Elise agreed that no such conveyance occurred; and (4) the trial court erred in overruling Kathy's objection to Elise's declaration.
The Cottonwood Ranch ("Cottonwood") is located in Reeves and Culberson Counties, Texas. J.B. Young and Loyd Jinkens owned Cottonwood in equal, undivided 1/2 interests. When Young died in 1956, his daughter Ruthie Young Parker ("Ruthie") inherited an undivided 1/6 interest in Cottonwood in trust as her separate property. In 1957, Ruthie and her husband, J. Loyd Parker, Jr. ("Loyd Jr."), purchased Jinkens' undivided ½ interest. Ruthie and Loyd Jr. then collectively owned an undivided 2/3 interest in Cottonwood as follows:
| Owner | Nature of Interest | Percentage |
| Ruthie | Separate-acquired in 1956 (Held in Trust) | 16.66% (1/6) |
| Loyd Jr. and Ruthie | Community-acquired in 1957 | 50.00% (1/2) |
| Total | 66.66% (2/3) |
When Loyd Jr. died in 1985, his will devised "all of [his] estate, both real and personal, and both community and separate, to [his] wife [Ruthie] in a life estate with remainder to [ his] children, J. Loyd Parker, III and Pamela Parker Clifton, equally, or to their issue, per stirpes." The will further expressly reserved "broad" and "unfettered" powers to Ruthie as the life tenant to:
After Loyd Jr.'s death, Cottonwood was owned by Ruthie as follows:
| Owner | Nature of Interest | Percentage |
| Ruthie | Separate – acquired in 1956 (Held in Trust) | 16.666% (1/6) |
| Ruthie | Separate—acquired in 1957(Ruthie's 1/2 of former community interest) | 25.00% (1/4) |
| Ruthie | Life Estate—acquired in 1985 (remainder to Loyd III and Pamela) | 25.00% (1/4) |
| Total | 66.666% (2/3) |
In 1990, Ruthie deeded her undivided ¼ interest, acquired in 1957, to Loyd III and Pamela in equal shares (the "1990 Deed"). In 1993, Ruthie signed a Correction Deed to correct the description of the property and to clarify that the 1990 Deed conveyed only Ruthie's undivided ¼ interest acquired in 1957, not the ¼ Life Estate interest she acquired under Loyd Jr.'s will in 1985.
After delivery of the 1990 Deed, the Parker Interest in Cottonwood was owned as follows:
| Owner | Nature of Interest | Percentage |
| Ruthie | Separate–acquired in 1956 (Held in Trust) | 16.666% (1/6) |
| Ruthie | Life Estate-acquired in 1985 (remainder to Loyd III and Pamela) | 25.00% (1/4) |
| Loyd III | Separate--acquired in 1990 | 12.50% (1/8) |
| Pamela | Separate--acquired in 1990 | 12.50% (1/8) |
| Total | 66.666% (2/3) |
In 1998, according to Lois Kapp, the Parker family's long-time accountant, Kapp suggested to Loyd III that he gift to his daughters, Elise and Allison, the undivided 1/8 interest Loyd III received from Ruthie in the 1990 Deed and referenced in the 1993 Correction Deed. On June 5, 1998, Loyd III signed a warranty deed conveying by gift to Elise and Allison "all of [his] right, title and interest in and to" the described Cottonwood tracts of land and described the consideration therefor as "love and affection which Grantor bears toward the Grantee herein" ("1998 Gift Deed"). The language in the deed did not expressly reference either the 1/8 interest Loyd III acquired from Ruthie in 1990 or Loyd III's 1/8 remainder interest.
After the 1998 conveyance, Loyd III filed a gift tax return, in which he described the gift as follows: "The property given to the two donees represents one sixteenth of the entire land in the tract for each of the donees." The gift tax return did not include any reference to the 1/8 remainder interest. Kapp testified that if Loyd III had also gifted his remainder interest, it was required to be listed and valued in the gift tax return.
Moreover, after the 1998 conveyance, Loyd III, Elise, and Allison signed three oil and gas leases with Clay Johnson. Loyd III signed these leases as "Remainderman of Ruthie's Young Parker life estate." Likewise, the division order issued in 1999 listed Loyd III as remainderman and Elise and Allison as owners of only 1/16 each.
According to Kathy, after the 1998 conveyance, the Parker Interest in Cottonwood was owned as follows:
| Owner | Nature of Interest | Percentage |
| Ruthie | Separate-Held in Trust acquired in 1956 | 16.666% (1/6) |
| Ruthie | Life Estate-acquired in 1985 (remainder to Loyd III and Pamela) | 25.00% (1/4) |
| Pamela | Separate-acquired in 1990 | 12.50% (1/8) |
| Allison | Separate-acquired in 1998 | 6.25% (1/16) |
| Elise | Separate-acquired in 1998 | 6.25% (1/16) |
| Total | 66.666% (2/3) |
Ruthie's death in 2006 extinguished her life estate, which permitted Loyd III and Pamela to inherit their remainder interest in Cottonwood. According to Kathy, upon Ruthie's death, the Parker Interest in Cottonwood was owned as follows:
| Owner | Nature of Interest | Percentage |
| Pamela | Separate-acquired in 1990 and 2006 | 33.333% (1/3) |
| Loyd III | Separate-acquired in 2006 | 20.833% (5/24) |
| Allison | Separate-acquired in 1998 | 6.25% (1/16) |
| Elise | Separate-acquired in 1998 | 6.25% (1/16) |
| Total | 66.666% (2/3) |
From 2006 to December 2015, Elise paid property taxes on Cottonwood based on a 1/16 ownership interest; received and accepted payments from Cottonwood's grass tenant based on her 1/16 ownership interest; and participated in the purchase of approximately 2,000 adjacent acres in proportion to her 1/16 ownership interest. In 2010, a title opinion was issued opining Elise and Allison each owned an undivided 1/16 interest. Based on this ownership, the parties executed three oil and gas leases and accepted bonus payments in accordance with this division.
In approximately 2013, however, after another entity succeeded to the existing leases, it issued a division order crediting Elise with ownership of a 1/8 interest, rather than 1/16. Elise's husband, Tommy Jordan, emailed the entity questioning its calculations, writing, Tommy then emailed Bob McCamey, the family member who historically managed Cottonwood, writing, "As for our interest, it should be what Loyd [III] deeded to [E]lise- 1/16 (.0625)." McCamey asked the new entity for clarification of its calculations. Thereafter, an "option division agreement" was issued that was consistent with the family's long-held beliefs as to their ownership interests, i.e., Elise owned 1/16 and Loyd III owned 5/24.
On August 20, 2013, after receiving the corrected option division agreement, Patrick Clifton sent an email to Cottonwood owners asking them to verify their "decimal interest" by signing and scanning back the option division agreement to Brenda Guzman. Loyd III forwarded Patrick's email to Kapp, noting, The attachment to Loyd III's email listed him as owning 0.2083334 (5/24), and Elise and Allison were listed as owning 0.0625 (1/16) each. After Kapp confirmed the percentages were correct, Loyd III signed the option division agreement. Elise and Allison also signed, acknowledging their ownership of 1/16 each. Payments were subsequently issued based on Elise's 1/16 ownership interest. Elise received the same bonus payment as in 2010.
Loyd III died in 2014. The probate court admitted his will to probate and appointed Kathy executor of the estate. Kathy was bequeathed Loyd III's real...
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