Cron v. Zimmer

296 P.3d 567, 255 Or. App. 114, 2013 WL 458251, 2013 Ore. App. LEXIS 132
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedFebruary 6, 2013
Docket160814132; A142540
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 296 P.3d 567 (Cron v. Zimmer) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cron v. Zimmer, 296 P.3d 567, 255 Or. App. 114, 2013 WL 458251, 2013 Ore. App. LEXIS 132 (Or. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

NAKAMOTO, J.

Plaintiffs appeal from a general judgment dismissing their interference with economic relations, conversion, and unjust enrichment claims. Plaintiffs assign error to the trial court’s grant of defendant’s motion for summary judgment. Because we conclude that plaintiffs demonstrated sufficient evidence for a trial on their interference with economic relations, conversion, and unjust enrichment claims, we reverse and remand.

We state the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, plaintiffs in this case, to determine whether there are any genuine issues of material fact and whether defendant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. ORCP 47 C; Jones v. General Motors Corp., 325 Or 404, 420, 939 P2d 608 (1997). Plaintiffs and defendant are siblings. Their mother, Conlin-Hutton, owned mineral rights to real property located in North Dakota. She intended to give the mineral rights to her five children in equal shares, but she died intestate in January 2006. Defendant was appointed the personal representative of her estate. Conlin-Hutton’s husband, Hutton, inherited all of her estate, including the mineral rights in North Dakota. In May 2006, shortly after receiving the mineral rights, Hutton conveyed the rights to defendant for $1 and “other good and valuable consideration.” Approximately two years later, plaintiffs Cron and Everson called Hutton and told him that the mineral rights that he had conveyed to defendant were worth $30,000. After speaking to Cron and Everson, Hutton signed an affidavit in March 2008 that Everson prepared. Hutton’s affidavit stated that he had conveyed the mineral rights to defendant so she could set up a trust to benefit all of the siblings:

“I, Harold Hutton, signed over the mineral rights of Betty Ann Conlin-Hutton to [defendant] with the intent that these mineral rights were to go to all five of [Conlin-Hutton]’s children. They were given to [defendant] to administer until the estate was settled and a trust could be established because she was living right across the street from me which allowed expedition of the transfer. The intent was clear [ ] and always that all five of the children [117]*117would get an equal portion of any and all of the mineral rights.”

Shortly thereafter, plaintiffs filed three claims against defendant for her refusal to account to plaintiffs for their share of the proceeds derived from the mineral rights: (1) interference with economic relations; (2) conversion; and (3) unjust enrichment. Specifically, plaintiffs alleged in their complaint that:

“6.
“It was the intention of Harold Hutton at the time he deeded the Mineral Rights to Defendant, that Defendant place the mineral rights into a trust which would own the mineral rights, receive any revenue generated by them, and distribute the proceeds in equal shares to each of Betty Ann Conlin-Hutton’s five children.
“7.
“Prior to the transfer from Harold Hutton to Defendant, Defendant was aware of Harold Hutton’s intention that the trust be created. Prior to the transfer, Defendant promised Harold Hutton she would create such a trust if Harold Hutton deeded the Mineral rights to her.
“8.
“Defendant’s promise induced Harold Hutton to deed the Mineral Rights to her.
“9.
“Defendant has failed and repeatedly refused to create the trust Betty Ann Conlin-Hutton and Harold Hutton intended.”

For all three claims, plaintiffs sought 80 percent of the revenue that defendant derived from the minerals on the property. They alleged that defendant had already received approximately $15,000 from the mineral rights. With respect to the unjust enrichment claim, plaintiffs also sought an accounting and injunctive relief compelling defendant to place the mineral rights into a trust, with the trustee to [118]*118be selected by the court, so that future proceeds will be distributed in equal shares to the five siblings.1

After depositions, defendant moved for summary judgment on all three of plaintiffs’ claims. In essence, defendant argued that there was no issue of material fact concerning Hutton’s intent to convey the mineral rights to defendant outright. Despite plaintiffs’ allegations and Hutton’s March 2008 affidavit, defendant asserted that plaintiffs did not provide evidence that Hutton intended that defendant set up a trust to distribute the revenues from the mineral rights associated with the property to all of the siblings. Without that intent, defendant reasoned, plaintiffs could not establish that defendant interfered with an economic relationship between Hutton and plaintiffs, converted plaintiffs’ chattel, and was unjustly enriched. Thus, defendant concluded that, as a matter of law, she was entitled to summary judgment in her favor.

To support her motion, defendant presented excerpts of Hutton’s deposition contradicting plaintiffs’ allegations, as well as an August 2008 affidavit by Hutton in which he disavowed his sworn statements in his March 2008 affidavit. During Hutton’s deposition, he said that he did not want the mineral rights because the rights generated approximately $60 per quarter and were not worth his time to manage. He conveyed the rights to defendant because she had been so helpful to him in his day-to-day life. Hutton said that all the allegations in plaintiffs’ complaint concerning his intent to convey the mineral rights were false. He also disavowed the affidavit that Everson prepared and Hutton had signed, saying that he was coerced into signing it.

Plaintiffs responded by arguing that Hutton’s initial sworn statements in his first affidavit produced an issue of material fact concerning his intent. In support of their allegations, plaintiffs submitted Hutton’s affidavit, [119]*119as well as excerpts from plaintiffs’ depositions, about conversations that they had had with defendant and Hutton shortly after Conlin-Hutton’s funeral concerning Hutton’s intent to convey the mineral rights. Plaintiff Everson stated that the defendant and Hutton had told her that Hutton conveyed the mineral rights to defendant “for the purpose of [defendant] taking control on our behalf, for all five of us children.” Everson also testified that, based on the conversations she had with defendant, defendant knew that their mother wanted the mineral rights to be divided equally among all the children. Everson explained that defendant had told her that the reason Hutton did not simply convey the mineral rights to all five children was because a North Dakota attorney advised defendant to put one person on the deed and to let that person set up a trust to distribute the proceeds from the mineral rights. Thus, plaintiffs argued, Hutton transferred the mineral rights with the understanding that defendant would set up a trust, but defendant did not set up the trust or distribute any money derived from the property.

The trial court granted defendant’s motion for summary judgment and this appeal followed. Plaintiffs appeared pro se and moved in this court for a determination as to whether Oregon courts have subject matter jurisdiction given that the mineral rights relate to real property located in North Dakota.2

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
296 P.3d 567, 255 Or. App. 114, 2013 WL 458251, 2013 Ore. App. LEXIS 132, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cron-v-zimmer-orctapp-2013.