Fisher v. Boling

2019 Ark. App. 225, 575 S.W.3d 592
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedApril 17, 2019
DocketNo. CV-18-490
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 2019 Ark. App. 225 (Fisher v. Boling) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fisher v. Boling, 2019 Ark. App. 225, 575 S.W.3d 592 (Ark. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinions

N. MARK KLAPPENBACH, Judge

This case concerns the interest of the estate of Wanda Boling-Fisher in her grandfather's trust. In summary, Wanda and her brother Eric Boling had evenly divided an annual income distribution generated by the trust. The trust would not be terminated and the assets distributed until certain contingencies had occurred; Wanda died before those contingencies occurred. Wanda had no children but was married, and her widower became the administrator of her estate. Eric asserted that the trust's terms dictated that Wanda's interest reverted to him (Eric) because he was the sole remaining child of their father and the intended beneficiary. Wanda's estate asserted that her interest had vested during her lifetime and became an asset of her estate. The Mississippi County Circuit Court considered cross-motions for summary judgment, entered an order in Eric's favor, and Wanda's estate appeals. We affirm as modified.

Our standard of review is well settled, as are the general principles of law used to construe trusts. The courts of equity have exclusive jurisdiction in cases involving matters of the construction, interpretation, and operation of trusts. Roberson v. Roberson , 2018 Ark. App. 423, 561 S.W.3d 737. We conduct a de novo review on the record of matters that sound in equity and will not reverse a finding by a circuit court in an equity case unless it is clearly erroneous. Id. A finding is clearly erroneous when, even though there is some evidence to support it, the appellate court is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been made. Id. A court construing a trust applies the same rules applicable to the construction of a will, and the paramount principle in the interpretation of wills is that the intention of the testator, or trust settlor, governs. Id. The settlor's intention is to be determined from viewing the four corners of the instrument considering the language used and giving meaning to all its provisions whenever possible. Id. Further, the court should give force to each clause of the trust, and only when there is irreconcilable conflict between two clauses must one give way to the other. Id. The court may read the language used by the settlor in light of the circumstances existing when the trust was written but only if there is uncertainty about the settlor's intentions from looking at the language used in the trust. Id. When the purpose of a trust is ascertained, that purpose will take precedence over all other canons of construction. Wisener v. Burns , 345 Ark. 84, 44 S.W.3d 289 (2001) ; Carmody v. Betts , 104 Ark. App. 84, 289 S.W.3d 174 (2008).

Ordinarily, on appeal from a summary-judgment disposition, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to *595the party resisting the motion, and any doubts and inferences are resolved against the moving party. Mississippi Cty. v. City of Blytheville , 2018 Ark. 50, 538 S.W.3d 822. However, when the parties agree on the facts, we simply determine whether the appellee was entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Id. When parties file cross-motions for summary judgment, as in this case, they essentially agree that there are no material facts remaining and that summary judgment is an appropriate means of resolving the case. Id. As to issues of law presented, our review is de novo. Id.

The facts leading to this litigation are these. In 1967, H.E. Boling, the grandfather of Wanda and Eric, executed a will that included a residuary trust. H.E. died in 1977, and his wife Eunice was the recipient of the annual income distribution of the trust until her death in 1999. Thereafter, the yearly distributions from the trust were directed to be given 75 percent to their son Charles and 25 percent to Eunice's daughter Wilma.1 Charles died in 2001; thereafter, his 75 percent distribution was evenly divided between his two then-adult children, Wanda and Eric. Wanda died in 2014.

In 2015, Eric petitioned the circuit court to construe their grandfather's will and the residuary trust, contending that the trust's terms directed Eric to be the recipient of the entire 75% income distribution, and seeking an order directing the trustee to distribute his portion of the corpus of the trust because Wanda died before the trust had terminated. Wanda's estate contended that when she died, her interest became an asset of her estate. Both sides filed motions for summary judgment.

The circuit court considered the terms of H.E.'s 1967 trust, which reads in pertinent part:

Section 2. This Residuary Trust is for the benefit of my wife, Eunice Boling; of our son, Charles Fred Boling and of his two children, Wanda Fay Boling, age 5, and Eric Ray Boling, age 2; and my wife's daughter, Wilma Leola East and of her two children, David Michael East, age 10, and Lisa Annette East, age 7.
Section 3. The Residuary Trust will be operated for their benefit during the periods stated. At the end of each year of the operation of this Trust, the Trustee shall determine the net income of the Trust, after he has paid all current obligations.... In other words, the Trustee in his sole discretion shall decide if any income is available to be distributed to the beneficiaries of this Trust for each year of the operation of the Trust. ....

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2019 Ark. App. 225, 575 S.W.3d 592, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fisher-v-boling-arkctapp-2019.