Reynolds v. Reynolds
| Citation | 182 S.E. 341,208 N.C. 578 |
| Decision Date | 01 November 1935 |
| Docket Number | 746. |
| Parties | REYNOLDS et al. v. REYNOLDS et al. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of North Carolina |
Appeal from Superior Court, Forsyth County; Clayton Moore, Special Judge.
Action by Anne Cannon Reynolds, a minor, acting by and through her next friend, J. F. Cannon, and Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, a minor, acting by and through her next friend, Howard Rondthaler, against Zachary Smith Reynolds, a minor, the Safe Deposit & Trust Company of Baltimore, as trustee under the wills of R. J. Reynolds and Katharine S. Johnston, and others. From the judgment, Annie L. Cannon, co-guardian of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, Anne Cannon Reynolds, I (now Smith), and the Safe Deposit & Trust Company of Baltimore trustee, appeal.
Affirmed.
Appearance of trustee which stated in its answer to petition for settlement of rights of parties to trust funds that it was "specially appearing under protest" was not "special," where trustee did not use such words for purpose of withholding its personal appearance, but for purpose of setting up contention that, even with trustee personally before court, court was without jurisdiction because property and investments in trusts were located in another state.
The following judgment was rendered in the court below:
"This cause coming on to be heard before his honor, Clayton Moore, Judge Presiding, at the March 11, 1935, term of the superior court of Forsyth county, and being heard at the said term of said court, upon the pleadings filed herein and the evidence offered by the respective parties in interest, the court, upon consideration thereof, finds the following facts:
1. That, in this action as originally constituted, the Cabarrus Bank & Trust Company, one of the duly appointed guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, filed a motion on April 30, 1934 to set aside the original judgment entered herein on August 4, 1931, in so far as said judgment attempted to affect the rights of the said Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, in the trust estates, created by her paternal grandparents, hereinafter referred to.
2. Upon the filing of said motion, an order was duly entered herein making Annie L. Cannon, co-guardian of the said Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, a party defendant herein, and ordering her to show cause why the said motion should not be allowed; the said order also commanding the original defendants herein to file any answer which they, or any of them, might have to said motion within twenty days from the service of said order; and that said order, together with a copy of said motion, was duly served upon the original defendants herein and upon the said Annie L. Cannon, one of the guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II.
3. That, subsequent to the order referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Safe Deposit & Trust Company of Baltimore, as trustee under the will of R. J. Reynolds and as trustee under the will and deed of Katharine S. Johnston, duly filed an answer to the motion referred to in paragraph 1 hereof; and that all the other original defendants herein duly filed an answer to said motion.
4. That, subsequent to the service of the order referred to in paragraph 2 hereof, Annie L. Cannon, co-guardian of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, duly filed herein her motion or response to the motion referred to in paragraph 1 hereof.
5. That, subsequent to the filing of the motion referred to in paragraph one hereof, the following persons have been duly made parties hereto: Maxie Smith Dunn, Albert B. Walker, John S. Graham, Christopher Smith Reynolds, an infant, Charles Henry Babcock, III, an infant, Barbara Frances Babcock, an infant, Nancy Jane Bagley, an infant, Richard J. Reynolds, Jr., an infant, and Mary Katharine Babcock, an infant. That R. C. Vaughn, a citizen and resident of Forsyth county, has been duly appointed next friend for the infant Christopher Smith Reynolds; that a guardian ad litem has been duly appointed for the other infants hereinabove named; that serving of process herein has been duly made upon said infants and upon said guardian ad litem; and that, by an order heretofore entered herein, P. Frank Hanes was duly appointed guardian ad litem for any and all persons who may hereafter be born interested in the determination of the issues raised by the pleadings herein, and service of process herein has been duly made upon said P. Frank Hanes, guardian ad litem.
6. That, subsequent to the filing of the motion referred to in paragraph 1 hereof, the said Christopher Smith Reynolds, by his next friend, R. C. Vaughn, filed an interplea herein setting forth his alleged rights in the trust shares therein referred to; and that the Cabarrus Bank & Trust Company, one of the guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, duly filed an answer to said interplea.
7. That, subsequent to the filing of the motion referred to in paragraph 1 hereof, Richard J. Reynolds, Mary Reynolds Babcock, and Nancy Reynolds Bagley, duly filed herein an offer of settlement and petition thereon, proposing a settlement of any and all rights and interests in the trust shares herein referred to, upon the terms and provisions set forth in said offer as amended; that, upon the filing of said offer, an order was duly entered therein directing that said offer of settlement and petition be filed with the clerk of this court, and that copies thereof be mailed by said clerk to all the parties to this action, or to their counsel, or to their duly constituted attorneys in fact, and that all parties hereto have thirty days from the date of said order within which to file an answer to said offer of settlement and petition thereon; and that said order has been duly complied with.
8. That an order was duly entered herein making a party to this action the state of North Carolina, on relation of A. J. Maxwell, Commissioner of Revenue; and that, pursuant to said order, a complaint was filed herein on behalf of the state, alleging that, under the revenue laws of North Carolina, the Commissioner of Revenue is entitled to receive and collect from the descendants of R. J. Reynolds, deceased, and Katharine S. Johnston, deceased, a large sum of money as inheritance tax upon the grounds set forth in said complaint.
9. That, subsequent to the proceedings hereinabove referred to, an order was duly entered herein that notice, together with copies of the pleas of intervention of A. J. Maxwell, Commissioner of Revenue, and of Christopher Smith Reynolds, as well as a copy of the offer of compromise and settlement aforesaid, forthwith issue out of this court to each of the infants who are parties to this cause, and the next friend or guardian ad litem of each infant, and the general guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, and of J. Edward Johnston, Jr., requiring each and all of said parties to appear herein within thirty days from the date of the service of said notice and copies, and file such plea, answer, or response as they might deem advisable; and that, pursuant to said order, said notice, together with the copies therein referred to, were duly served upon the parties described in said order.
10. That thereafter, the Cabarrus Bank & Trust Company, one of the guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, duly filed a response to said offer of settlement of Richard J. Reynolds, Mary Reynolds Babcock, and Nancy Reynolds Bagley, referred to in paragraph 7 hereof.
11. That thereafter the Cabarrus Bank & Trust Company, one of the guardians of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, duly filed a response to the complaint of the state of North Carolina, on the relation of A. J. Maxwell, Commissioner of Revenue, referred to in paragraph 8 hereof.
12. That thereafter Christopher Smith Reynolds, by his next friend, R. C. Vaughn, filed a response to the offer of settlement of Richard J. Reynolds, Mary Reynolds Babcock, and Nancy Reynolds Bagley, referred to in paragraph 7 hereof.
13. That thereafter the Safe Deposit & Trust Company of Baltimore, trustee under the will of R. J. Reynolds, and trustee under the will and deed of Katharine Smith Johnston, specially appearing under protest, filed an answer to said offer of settlement referred to in paragraph 7 hereof.
14. That thereafter Anne Cannon Smith filed an answer and response 'to all the motions, interpleadings, proposals and acceptances filed by the various parties herein.'
15. That thereafter Annie L. Cannon, guardian of Anne Cannon Reynolds, II, filed an answer in response to the offer of settlement referred to in paragraph 7 hereof, and answered the several complaints in the pleas, answers, and motions filed in this cause affecting the rights of her infant ward.
16. That thereafter Christopher Smith Reynolds, by his next friend, R. C. Vaughn, filed a reply to the response of Anne Cannon Smith referred to in paragraph 14 hereof, and to the response of Annie L. Cannon, guardian referred to in paragraph 15 hereof.
17. That thereafter the Reynolds heirs filed an answer to the complaint of the state of North Carolina, and incorporated therein an offer of compromise of the claim of the state of North Carolina, which was amended as above stated.
18. That thereafter, to wit, on January 30, 1935, an order was entered herein directing that a copy of the offer of compromise referred to in the preceding paragraph, and a copy of said order, be mailed by the clerk of this court to counsel for all parties and that all parties within ten days from the date of said order, by filing answers to said proposal, show cause why said proposal should not be accepted and approved by the court, and that said order was duly complied with.
19. That thereafter, in accordance with the order referred to in the preceding paragraph, responses to the offer of compromise of the tax claim referred to in paragraph 17 hereof was duly filed on...
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