Horton v. Horton

965 S.W.2d 78, 1998 WL 105958
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 23, 1998
Docket2-97-023-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by87 cases

This text of 965 S.W.2d 78 (Horton v. Horton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Horton v. Horton, 965 S.W.2d 78, 1998 WL 105958 (Tex. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinion

OPINION

DAY, Justice.

This is a will contest case filed by Appel-lees Henderson Fillmore Horton, Mitchel Montgomery “Babe” Horton, and Eric Wayne Horton, the sons and grandson of the deceased, Henderson “Pete” Horton. Appellant Melba Jean Horton, the deceased’s wife, challenges the trial court’s order setting aside Pete’s will and revoking the letters testamentary issued to Melba on February 7, *81 1994. Appellees bring three cross-points, alleging that the trial court erred in granting a judgment n.o.v. on the issue of testamentary capacity, in denying Appellees’ motion for summary judgment, and in granting Melba’s motion for a partial summary judgment. Because we find that (1) there was no evidence to support the jury’s finding that Pete lacked testamentary capacity, (2) there was no evidence to support the jury’s finding that Melba procured the will through undue influence, (3) the denial of Appellees’ motion for summary judgment may not be appealed following a trial on the merits and entry of a final judgment, and (4) Appellees waived their third cross-point by failing to adequately brief that complaint, we affirm in part and reverse and render in part.

BACKGROUND

Pete and Melba married on December 22, 1975. During the marriage, Pete executed four wills. In 1977, Pete wrote a holographic will leaving his entire estate in fee simple to Melba. Pour years later, he drew another holographic will, this time leaving his personal property to Melba outright and his real property to her for life, remainder to be divided equally between Pete’s two sons from a previous marriage, Fillmore and Babe, and Melba’s son and daughter from a previous marriage, Debra Jean Voyles King and James Michael Voyles. In 1991, Pete and Melba executed a joint and contractual will that left all personal property to the surviving spouse in fee simple and all real property to the survivor for life, remainder to Pete’s two sons and Melba’s son and daughter. On December 30,1993, Pete and Melba executed a second joint and contractual will, under which all property would pass to the survivor in fee simple. In the event the survivor-decided to sell the real property, a provision in the 1993 will granted a first option to purchase to Pete’s sons and Melba’s daughter and son.

Pete died on January 20,1994, survived by Melba, Fillmore, and Babe. Pete is also survived by Appellee Eric Horton, the only child of Pete’s son Samuel who died in 1977. On January 26, 1994, Melba filed an application to probate the 1993 will. The trial court admitted the will to probate and Melba qualified as independent executor on February 7, 1994.

On September 30, 1994, Appellees filed a motion for summary judgment to set aside the order admitting the will to probate, asserting that the will’s self-proving affidavit was fatally defective because the witnesses, Teresa Weaver and Lana Osteen, failed to “swear” to the truth of the affidavit as required by section 59 of the Texas Probate Code. Tex. PROb.Code Ann. § 59 (Vernon Supp.1998). The trial court denied Appel-lees’ motion for summary judgment on October 7,1994.

On June 26, 1995, Appellees filed an amended petition alleging that Pete lacked testamentary capacity to execute the will and that Melba procured the will through undue influence. Appellees also petitioned the trial court to impose a constructive trust on a 180-acre tract of land, one-half of which Pete had conveyed to Melba by deed on April 20, 1989, and the remaining one-half of which Pete devised to Melba under the 1993 will. On June 30, 1995, Melba filed a motion for partial summary judgment, alleging that the statute of limitations and the parol evidence rule barred Appellees’ suit for a constructive trust. The trial court issued an order granting the motion for partial summary judgment on December 5,1995.

The remaining issues were tried to a jury on June 18, 1996, at which time Appellees presented the following testimony:

James Spiller, the attorney who drafted the 1991 and 1993 wills, testified that he initiated the conversation about changing the life estate provision in the 1991 will with Melba and suggested that she and Pete discuss the effect of that provision. Spiller said that he was concerned Melba might have problems paying off the note on the real property after Pete died and would be unable to sell the property because of the remainder interest.

Spiller also testified about the execution of the 1993 will. He said that the Hortons executed the will at their home and that Pete read it before he signed it, and then Spiller read it aloud to Pete, Melba, and the two *82 witnesses present. Spiller said that prior to December 30, 1993, he and Pete had not discussed the will. He also testified that Pete appeared to be extremely ill on that day and was less active than in the past, but very alert. According to Spiller, Pete expressed no reservations about executing the will. Moreover, Spiller testified that Pete understood the 1993 will and that Pete was knowledgeable about the effect of certain will provisions because he and Spiller had discussed them regarding Pete’s previous will.

In addition, Spiller testified that Pete was still conducting his own business affairs in December 1993. Spiller also said that he believed Pete was very strong-willed and Melba could not have coerced him to sign the will if he had not wanted to. Last, he testified that Pete had specifically said that he did not want to leave anything in his will to his grandson Erie.

Melba testified that Pete had thyroid cancer and that a C.A.T. scan during the first week of January 1994 revealed that the cancer had spread to his brain, skull, and bones. She said that in mid-December 1993, Pete began taking morphine and MS-Contin for pain relief and Zoloft, an anti-depressant. Melba stated that although she believed that the medications must have affected Pete’s mental capacity to some degree, she could not tell that they did. She testified that Pete continued to handle all the family business despite his illness, and he was still serving as Jack County constable in December 1993. She said that following a chemotherapy treatment in January 1994, Pete was confused at times, but usually acted alert and continued to handle his business affairs. Although Melba said that Pete hallucinated at times, she testified that such episodes occurred infrequently and only caused Pete to imagine things on the bedspread that were not actually there. She could not recall any specific times when those episodes occurred, except that Pete had been hallucinating before he was admitted to the hospital on January 19,1994.

Melba further testified that Spiller brought up the potential problem with the life estate provision in the 1991 will and asked her to discuss it with Pete. She said that after talking about it with Pete, she called Spiller and asked him to prepare the will without the life estate. •

Regarding the execution of the will, Melba testified that Spiller gave Pete a copy of the will and Pete read it, then Spiller read the will aloud to everyone present. She said that Pete had not taken any medication prior to executing the will that would have prevented him from understanding the contents of the will, or from objecting if he did not want to sign it. Melba also testified that Pete was set in his ways and would not have signed the will if he had not wanted to.

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Bluebook (online)
965 S.W.2d 78, 1998 WL 105958, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/horton-v-horton-texapp-1998.