Hesthagen v. Harby

481 P.2d 438, 78 Wash. 2d 934, 1971 Wash. LEXIS 566
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 25, 1971
Docket39916
StatusPublished
Cited by35 cases

This text of 481 P.2d 438 (Hesthagen v. Harby) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hesthagen v. Harby, 481 P.2d 438, 78 Wash. 2d 934, 1971 Wash. LEXIS 566 (Wash. 1971).

Opinions

Finley, J.

This is a collateral attack upon the final distribution of the assets of the estate of one Maja Harby, deceased. Plaintiffs, complaining heirs, are the nieces and nephew of the decedent. Defendants are (1) the distributees under the decree of distribution, and (2) the administrator of the estate and his surety. The distributees appeal from a judgment against them in favor of the plaintiffs. Plaintiffs appeal from a dismissal of their claim as against the administrator and his surety. The pertinent facts are these:

Three elderly sisters, Maja Harby, Gunda Harby, and Bertha Harby Warming, a widow, resided together for a period of years in Bremerton, Washington. Mrs. Warming, who amassed a substantial estate, became quite ill in 1958 and was unable to manage her business affairs. At the behest of Gunda and their brother, Harold Harby, Theodore C. Blomberg, a mechanical contractor, was appointed as guardian of Mrs. Warming’s estate. The guardian, with the assistance of his attorney, managed Mrs. Warming’s affairs until 1959, when she died, leaving the substance of her estate to Maja and Gunda (her daughter residing in Norway having predeceased her). At the request of Maja and Gunda, Mr. Blomberg was appointed administrator- with the will annexed and continued administration of the estate. While so engaged, the proceeds from the estate of Mrs. Warming’s daughter were transmitted to Mr. Blomberg through the Norwegian Consul in Seattle, Washington. Before the estate was distributed, and on November 24, 1961,- Maja died [937]*937intestate. She was survived by Gunda, by her brother Harold who resided in California, and by the children of a deceased brother, i.e., plaintiffs herein, Gunvor Harby Hesthagen, Ruth Harby Haugen, Tove Harby Bratlie, Egon Harby, all residing in Norway, and Eva Harby Bunk, residing in Germany. Aase Christensen Wangensteen, a sixth child of the deceased brother, residing in Norway, is not a party to this suit. During her lifetime Maja maintained contact with these relatives through correspondence. Likewise, both before and after Maja’s death, Gunda and Harold, in varying degrees, corresponded and communicated with them.

At the time of Maja’s death, Gunda informed both Harold, the brother, and Egon Harby in Norway of her passing, and following a brief funeral service her remains were cremated and sent to Egon for placement near her mother’s resting place. Egon, in turn, notified his five sisters of Maja’s passing. In the meantime, at the request of Gunda and with the acquiescence of Harold, Mr. Blomberg agreed to act as administrator of Maja’s estate, which consisted of her undistributed share of Mrs. Warming’s estate. In this capacity, Mr. Blomberg was aware that Maja’s remains had been sent to Norway.

As a prelude to Mr. Blomberg’s appointment as administrator, and in preparation of the petition therefor, his attorney perfunctorily inquired of Gunda regarding Maja’s heirs. Gunda responded that she and Harold were the only remaining heirs. Without further inquiry, the petition for letters of administration and the list of heirs (RCW 11.28 .111, 83.36.040) were prepared, signed by Gunda, and filed in the Superior Court for Kitsap County, Washington, listing Gunda and Harold as the sole surviving heirs. Pursuant thereto, and without any appearance in court, Mr. Blom-berg was appointed administrator, notice of his appointment forwarded to Gunda and Harold in accordance with RCW 11.28.237 and 11.76.040, and a bond posted. Plaintiffs received no notice of the proceeding.

Thereafter, neither Mr. Blomberg nor his attorney made any further inquiry or investigation as to heirship, and [938]*938neither Gunda nor Harold volunteered any additional information in this respect. This was despite the fact that the evidence indicates sources of information were readily available which would have revealed the existence of plaintiffs as surviving heirs of Maja. Administration of Mrs. Warming’s and Maja’s estates was concluded, and upon Mr. Blomberg’s final account and petition for distribution, together with his testimony in support thereof, the superior court ordered Maja’s share of Mrs. Warming’s estate distributed to Gunda and Harold, share and share alike, on August 6, 1962. Again plaintiffs received no notice of the final accounting and distribution of the estate.

In June 1963, Harold visited Norway and spent considerable time with those plaintiffs residing there. The evidence is in dispute as to the nature and extent of any conversations then carried on between plaintiffs and Harold concerning Maja’s estate and its disposition. In 1965, at Harold’s invitation and expense, plaintiff Gunvor Harby Hesthagen visited with Harold and his wife in California. Upon Gun-vor’s return to Norway and in October 1965, inquiries were directed to the Norwegian Consul in Seattle, who, in turn, communicated with Mr. Blomberg’s attorney and learned of the proceedings in Maja’s estate. The consul then relayed this information to plaintiffs sometime in the latter part of November or early part of December 1965. Negotiations were then commenced which culminated in the institution of this suit in early September 1966.

By their complaint plaintiffs alleged that Gunda and Harold, as well as Mr. Blomberg as the administrator, failed to advise the probate court of their existence and failed to give them notice of the proceedings in Maja’s estate, thereby depriving them of the opportunity to have their heirship determined. They sought judgment against the defendants, jointly and severally. In essence, the defendants denied any intentional wrongdoing and affirmatively pleaded the statute of limitations. Trial followed before the court sitting without a jury.

The trial court made findings of fact substantially as follows: (a) although plaintiffs were informed of Maja’s [939]*939death in 1961, they were not notified and did not learn of her estate, the administration thereof, or of their rights as heirs until December 1965; (b) Gunda and Harold knew of the existence of plaintiffs and had communicated frequently with them before and after Maja’s death; (c) both Gunda and Harold knew that they were being represented to the probate court as the sole heirs but neither revealed the existence of plaintiffs to the administrator, his attorney, nor to the court; however, in this regard, neither acted fraudulently nor with intent to deceive; (d) Gunda and Harold both waived their statutory rights to act as administrator in favor of Mr. Blomberg; (e) neither Mr. Blom-berg nor his attorney was actually aware of the existence of plaintiffs and made no independent attempt, beyond a prefatory inquiry of Gunda, to discover potential heirs; (f) a reasonable investigation and inquiry would have timely revealed plaintiffs’ existence and their relationship to Maja; and (g) the property distributed to Gunda and Harold is still in their possession either in the form distributed (cash) or commingled with their other funds.

From the foregoing findings, the trial court’s conclusions of law were as follows: (a) plaintiffs had not received notice of the pendency of the probate proceedings or of the hearing upon the final report and petition for distribution as required by RCW 11.28.237

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
481 P.2d 438, 78 Wash. 2d 934, 1971 Wash. LEXIS 566, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hesthagen-v-harby-wash-1971.