Re: Rhoda Belle Hudson Armster

Decision Date25 October 2001
Docket Number00-00776
PartiesIN RE: RHODA BELLE HUDSON ARMSTER
CourtTennessee Court of Appeals

Appeal from the Chancery Court for Lawrence County, No. 9501-99

Robert L. Holloway, Chancellor

This appeal involves a conservatorship action and an effort to set aside a will and related documents. Mrs. Armster executed a living trust, in which she named herself as the beneficiary during her life time. She also executed a will, which devised her entire estate to the trust and named The Bible Hygiene New Direction Training Center as beneficiary of the trust upon her death. Appellant, a child of Mrs. Armster, filed suit in Chancery Court and sought to: (1) have a conservator appointed for his mother to manage her legal and financial affairs; (2) have the trust and will set aside on the basis that his mother did not have sufficient mental capacity to execute the documents; and (3) have the will set aside because it was obtained as a result of undue influence. The trial court did not appoint a conservator and found that Mrs. Armster had the requisite mental capacity to execute the documents. Further, the court found that the will was valid as it was not the result of undue influence. We affirm the decisions of the trial court.

Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Chancery Court

Affirmed and Remanded

Patricia J. Cottrell, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which Ben H. Cantrell, P.J., M.S., and William C. Koch, Jr., J., joined.

Tom W. Moore, Jr., Columbia, Tennessee, for the appellant, Robert L. Armster, Jr.

Jane M. Jennings, Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, for the appellee, Shirley Nixon, Trustee and The Bible Hygiene New Direction Training Center Trust.

OPINION

Rhoda Belle Armster is the appellant's 78 year old mother. She and her deceased husband, Robert L. Armster, Sr., had four surviving children. The couple was drawn to health and evangelistic work and, once they had educated their children, they pursued the ministry and eventually moved to Tennessee. Shirley Nixon joined the Armsters' ministry in 1978 as a volunteer and became significantly more involved both personally and professionally with the Armsters over the years. Ms. Nixon began living with the Armsters in 1988. Some of the Armster children resented her involvement.1

In 1990, Mrs. Armster suffered a head injury in an auto accident which caused a subdural hematoma. According to the children, Ms. Nixon's role in the household grew even greater after Mrs. Armster's injury. Ms. Nixon was responsible for the cooking and cleaning of the house and generally cared for Mr. and Mrs. Armster.

The Armsters bought a farm in Lawrence County in 1993 and formed the Bible Hygiene New Direction Training Center, where, with Ms. Nixon's help, they sold nutrition supplements and gave lectures and seminars. Ms. Nixon also helped with management of the farm. In 1998, after learning he had cancer, Mr. Armster met with an attorney and arranged for the preparation of several documents for Mrs. Armster and himself. On September 10, 1998, Mr. and Mrs. Armster executed multiple documents. The first document executed created a trust, The Bible Hygiene New Direction Training Center Trust ("The Bible Hygiene Trust" or "Trust"), which was funded by assets transferred to it by the Armsters and which benefitted the grantors2 during their respective lifetimes. The second set of documents executed were three warranty deeds signed by both Mr. and Mrs. Armster which transferred their interest in four3 tracts of property to The Bible Hygiene Trust. The third document executed was a durable power of attorney, signed by Mrs. Armster that gave Mr. Armster, and in the event of his inability, Ms. Nixon power of attorney.4 The fourth document was a living will signed by Mrs. Armster.5 The fifth document executed was the last will and testament of Mrs. Armster, which devised her entire estate to The Bible Hygiene Trust.

The document that established The Bible Hygiene Trust stated the purpose of the trust was "to benefit the Grantor throughout the remainder of the Grantor's life," and after the Grantor's death to provide "spiritual and physical care and training for all those who are poor, sick, and/or afflicted, and in need of such spiritual and physical care and training, and who submit themselves to the principles, health code, dress code, and Sabbath code established by the Bible Hygiene New Direction Training Center all to the glory of God."

The trust document named Mr. Armster as Trustee and gave him broad authority to manage and distribute the income and assets. The document further provided, "In the event of the death, resignation, or inability of Robert Armster, Sr. to act as Trustee, Shirley Nixon of Lawrence County, Tennessee is hereby named Successor Trustee to act with all the powers and discretion given herein to the original Trustee." The document named several other individuals to act in Ms. Nixon's stead in the event of her death or resignation, none of whom were the Armster children.

On October 19, 1998, Mrs. Armster executed a codicil to the September 10, 1998, will. After expressing her love for each of her children, she again devised her entire estate to The Bible Hygiene Trust. Her lawyer testified that it was his practice to name the children in wills affecting their rights and that their names had inadvertently been omitted in the initial will.

Mr. Armster, Sr., died in March 1999. Several weeks later, his son, Robert Armster, Jr., ("Appellant") filed the underlying action, in which he (1) sought a temporary restraining order which would prohibit Ms. Nixon from acting on behalf of The Bible Hygiene Trust; (2) requested the appointment of a guardian ad litem to represent Mrs. Armster in these proceedings and a conservator to manage her financial affairs; and (3) sought a declaration that the conveyances by Mrs. Armster to the Trust were void. Attached to the petition was an unsworn letter from Mrs. Armster's physician stating in pertinent part: "Dear Mrs. Armster has had a subdural hematoma with normal pressure hydrocephalus since 1990. I have known her since August of 1994, and she has been incompetent to even handle her activities of daily living. She has progressively deteriorated since that time." Appellant subsequently amended the petition to allege the documents executed by his mother were the result of undue influence on the part of Mr. Armster, Sr., and Ms. Nixon.

The trial court granted the temporary restraining order and appointed a guardian ad litem, who filed an answer on Mrs. Armster's behalf, which admitted that she was disabled due to her mental and physical infirmities. The guardian ad litem stated that "it would be in Rhoda Armster's best interest to be declared incompetent and have a conservator appointed for her." At the court's request, the guardian ad litem visited Mrs. Armster at her home, a double wide trailer in a remote area of the county. He stated that he believed Mrs. Armster was well taken care of by Ms. Nixon, a home health nurse, and another family friend. He noted that "Ms. Nixon appears to have genuine concern for her [Mrs. Armster's] well being." He also stated, "I have not changed my mind as to whether or not [Mrs.] Armster needs a conservator appointed. She is not capable, in my opinion, of looking after her business, and needs someone to look after her person as well as her business affairs." Further, he noted that "[Mrs.] Armster seemed to be more than adequately taken care of and seemed to be happy in her surroundings."

At the hearing on the matter, the trial court heard testimony from witnesses who were present at the time that Mrs. Armster signed the documents in question. These witnesses included Mr. Plant, the attorney who prepared the will and took it to Mrs. Armster, Ms. Grooms, the attorney who took the codicil to Mrs. Armster and observed its execution, Ms. Davenport and Ms. Peters, the two legal secretaries who accompanied Mr. Plant and Ms. Grooms and witnessed or notarized the documents, and Ms. Nixon. The trial court found:

Mr. Plant, Ms. Davenport, and Ms. Peters testified in detail about the execution of the documents on September 10, 1998. Each of these witnesses appeared very credible. Mr. Plant testified that he went over the documents in detail with Ms. Armster, that he was satisfied that she knew and understood the documents, that they carried out her desires, and that she wanted to execute the documents. He testified that he would not have allowed Mrs. Armster to execute the documents had he not been certain that she understood them. He testified that Mrs. Armster answered every question put to her satisfactorily. Ms. Davenport and Ms. Peters testified that Mrs. Armster appeared competent and her responses were appropriate to the questions put to her.

Ms. Grooms, Ms. Davenport, and Ms. Peters testified about Mrs. Armster executing the Codicil on October 19, 1998. Ms. Grooms testified that she explained the document and that she would not have allowed Mrs. Armster to execute the document had she been uncomfortable concerning Mrs. Armster's capacity to execute the Codicil. She testified satisfactorily concerning the correction of the name Roda to Rhoda by Mrs. Armster. Ms. Davenport and Ms. Peters confirmed Ms. Grooms testimony.

Appellant offered deposition testimony of Mrs. Armster's family physician, Dr. Nancy Armetta, who had not seen Mrs. Armster for a year prior to the signing of the documents. In her deposition, Dr. Armetta stated that when Mrs. Armster was her patient her mental condition was "slow," but noted that sometimes her mind was clearer than others. The doctor admitted that without having seen Mrs. Armster on the day the documents were executed, she could not say what Mrs. Armster's condition was then.

In addition, the children testified to their observations as to their mother's mental state at...

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