Frances Spanos Shelton v. Vernon Leuschner, and as Durable Power of Attorney for Katherine Leuschner, Robert Lee Spanos, Christopher Blake Spanos, and Kathryn Nicole Lawrie

Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided July 1, 2025·No. 15-25-00072-CV·Published

Opinion

ACCEPTED 15-25-00072-CV FIFTEENTH COURT OF APPEALS AUSTIN, TEXAS 7/1/2025 1:42 PM No. 15-25-00072-CV CHRISTOPHER A. PRINE No. 10-25-00194-CV CLERK FILED IN 15th COURT OF APPEALS IN THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTEENTH DISTRICT AUSTIN, TEXAS 7/1/2025 1:42:07 PM IN THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE TENTH CHRISTOPHER DISTRICT A. PRINE Clerk

FRANCES SPANOS SHELTON, Appellant, v. VERNON LEUSCHNER, ROBERT LEE SPANOS, CHRISTOPHER BLAKE SPANOS, KATHRYN NICOLE LAWRIE, AND KATHERINE LEUSCHNER, Appellees.

IN RE FRANCES SPANOS SHELTON, Relator.

Interlocutory Appeal and Original Proceeding from the 414th District Court of McLennan County, Texas, Cause No. 2024-3035-5

UNOPPOSED MOTION TO TRANSFER INTERLOCUTORY APPEAL FROM THE FIFTEENTH COURT OF APPEALS TO THE TENTH COURT OF APPEALS AND BRIEF IN SUPPORT

Kirk L. Pittard Craig D. Cherry State Bar No. 24010313 State Bar No. 24012419 kpittard@dpslawgroup.com ccherry@cjsjlaw.com Rick Thompson Ryan C. Johnson State Bar No. 00788537 State Bar No. 24048574 rthompson@dpslawgroup.com rjohnson@cjsjlaw.com DURHAM, PITTARD & SPALDING, LLP Scott H. James P.O. Box 224626 State Bar No. 24037848 Dallas, Texas 75222 sjames@cjsjlaw.com (214) 946-8000 M. Katie Quillen (214) 946-8433 (fax) State Bar No. 24133047 kquillen@cjsjlaw.com CHERRY JOHNSON SIEGMUND JAMES, PLLC 7901 Fish Pond Road, 2nd Floor Waco, Texas 76710

COUNSEL FOR APPELLANT/RELATOR Appellant/Relator Frances Spanos Shelton (“Fran”) files this motion

to transfer the interlocutory appeal currently pending in the Fifteenth Court

of Appeals back to the Tenth Court of Appeals for resolution alongside the

related petition for writ of mandamus pending in the Tenth Court. In

support, Fran would respectfully show the Court as follows:

PROCEDURE FOR TRANSFERRING A CASE BACK TO A TRANSFEROR COURT

After a case has been transferred from one court of appeals to another

for docket equalization, the proper procedure for requesting transfer of the

case from the transferee court back to the transferor court has been set forth

by the Texas Supreme Court:

The party requesting a transfer should file a copy of the motion to transfer in each of the two courts of appeals, asking that, when the motion is forwarded to the Supreme Court, each court of appeals advise the Supreme Court in writing whether it has any objection to the proposed transfer. Any briefs in favor of the proposed transfer should also be filed in each court of appeals and forwarded with the transfer motion. [The Texas Supreme Court] will then have the motion, the briefs, and the comments of the two courts of appeals in determining whether to grant the motion to transfer.

Miles v. Ford Motor Co., 914 S.W.2d 135, 137 n.2 (Tex. 1995).

Motion to Transfer Interlocutory Appeal Pending in Fifteenth Court of Appeals to Tenth Court of Appeals Page 2 INTRODUCTION

This motion presents the Court with a unique situation resulting from

the application of the statutes creating the Fifteenth Court of Appeals in a

case transferred to that court for docket equalization purposes and an almost

identical original proceeding pending in the transferor court. Both courts of

appeals will be applying the precedent of the Tenth Court of Appeals to both

matters. However, the Fifteenth Court of Appeals does not have jurisdiction

to grant mandamus relief in a matter over which it does not have original

appellate jurisdiction. Therefore, Fran, as Relator, filed her petition for writ

of mandamus in the Tenth Court of Appeals. For the efficient resolution of

both matters by a single court, for the convenience of the parties, and to

further the interests of justice, Ms. Shelton respectfully seeks transfer of the

interlocutory appeal pending in the Fifteenth Court of Appeals back to the

Tenth Court of Appeals.

BACKGROUND

This is a complicated family dispute regarding the appointment of a

receiver for the Dorothy Spanos Living Trust (“Trust”). This case is further

complicated by the fact that County Court at Law No. 1 of McLennan County

issued numerous orders in an earlier proceeding that purport to govern the

Motion to Transfer Interlocutory Appeal Pending in Fifteenth Court of Appeals to Tenth Court of Appeals Page 3 current administration of the Trust—even though the county court never

had subject matter jurisdiction over the Trust disputes. A court that issues

orders without jurisdiction to do so abuses its discretion, and its orders are

void. Thus, Fran has filed an interlocutory appeal and a petition for writ of

mandamus. Both matters involve Fran’s challenge to the district court’s

order appointing a receiver, which, in turn, adopts and enforces several

aspects of the earlier void orders issued by the county court at law.

On December 19, 2007, Ms. Dorothy Spanos transferred much of her

real and personal property into the Dorothy Spanos Living Trust. See CR

467, 551. 1 Ms. Spanos appointed herself trustee. See CR 466. She appointed

Ms. Frances Spanos Shelton (“Fran”), her daughter, to serve as co-trustee.

Ms. Spanos did not appoint her other daughter, Ms. Katherine Leuschner, as

a trustee. Ms. Spanos also signed the First Amendment to the Trust. See CR

553-60. Upon Ms. Spanos’s death, Fran became the sole trustee.

In March 2022, Ms. Leuschner filed an application in the County Court

at Law No. 1 for the appointment of Retired Judge Robert Stem as the

temporary administrator of Ms. Spanos’s estate as well as the trust advisor

1 All cites reference the interlocutory appeal record filed in the Fifteenth Court of Appeals.

Motion to Transfer Interlocutory Appeal Pending in Fifteenth Court of Appeals to Tenth Court of Appeals Page 4 for the Trust. See CR 801-02. Under the terms of the Trust, a trust advisor

acts as a “super-trustee” with the power to, among other things, remove a

trustee with or without cause, appoint a successor trustee, direct a trustee to

execute any documents necessary to carry out his will, and, if any conflicts

arise, overrule and trump the authority and actions of a trustee. See CR 476-

78.

On March 8, 2022, the county court at law entered an order appointing

Judge Stem as the temporary administrator of Ms. Spanos’s estate and trust

advisor of the Trust. See CR 817-19. His term as trustee was set to expire on

September 5, 2022. See CR 817. On May 18, 2022, the county court at law

discharged Judge Stem as the temporary administrator and ended the

administration of the estate. See Tab 821-23. Judge Stem remained the

purported trust advisor under the county court’s earlier order.

On September 1, 2022, the county court signed an order extending the

appointment of Judge Stem as trust advisor until he “either determines that

there no longer exists a necessity for a Trust Advisor, by agreement of the

Parties, or if the Court, in the best interest of the Trust, determines cause

exists for the removal of the Trust Advisor.” See CR 827-28. On May 3, 2023,

Judge Stem removed Fran as Trustee of the Trust, skipped over Mr. Ricky

Motion to Transfer Interlocutory Appeal Pending in Fifteenth Court of Appeals to Tenth Court of Appeals Page 5 Shelton, who was named the successor trustee in the Trust provisions, and

appointed his colleague Mr. John Malone, a Waco attorney, as Trustee. See

CR 923.

On October 25, 2024, Fran filed this lawsuit against Mr. Malone for

breach of his fiduciary duties in the district court. CR 9-19. On February 3,

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Frances Spanos Shelton v. Vernon Leuschner, and as Durable Power of Attorney for Katherine Leuschner, Robert Lee Spanos, Christopher Blake Spanos, and Kathryn Nicole Lawrie, (Tex. Ct. App. 2025).

Frances Spanos Shelton v. Vernon Leuschner, and as Durable Power of Attorney for Katherine Leuschner, Robert Lee Spanos, Christopher Blake Spanos, and Kathryn Nicole Lawrie (Frances Spanos Shelton v. Vernon Leuschner, and as Durable Power of Attorney for Katherine Leuschner, Robert Lee Spanos, Christopher Blake Spanos, and Kathryn Nicole Lawrie) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

In Re Dickason
987 S.W.2d 570 (Texas Supreme Court, 1998)
In Re Southwestern Bell Telephone Co.
35 S.W.3d 602 (Texas Supreme Court, 2000)
Miles v. Ford Motor Co.
914 S.W.2d 135 (Texas Supreme Court, 1995)