In re Estate of Knapp

756 S.E.2d 716, 326 Ga. App. 486
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedMarch 24, 2014
DocketA13A1747
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 756 S.E.2d 716 (In re Estate of Knapp) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Estate of Knapp, 756 S.E.2d 716, 326 Ga. App. 486 (Ga. Ct. App. 2014).

Opinion

McMillian, Judge.

Henry Scott Knapp (“Scott Knapp”), the former executor of his mother’s will and the nominated, but unappointed, executor of his father’s will, appeals from the order of the Probate Court of Bibb County finding that he breached his fiduciary duty, thereby damaging the other heirs to the estates —• his sister, niece, and nephew. Scott Knapp is not disputing the finding that he breached his fiduciary duty, instead contending that the remedy awarded by the probate court — that he shall not receive any further distributions from his mother’s and father’s estates — was without legal basis and exceeded the scope of permissible damages. For the reasons set forth below, we agree with Scott Knapp that the probate court erred in its judgment, and we vacate its order and remand the case for proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.

Mary Scott Knapp (“Mary Knapp”) died on April 15, 2000, and was survived by her husband George Edward Knapp (“George Knapp”), her children Scott Knapp and Nancy Louise Knapp (“Nancy Knapp”), and by her grandchildren Andrew Knapp and Leanna Knapp (the “Grandchildren”). Mary Knapp’s last will and testament, and the [487]*487codicils thereto, were admitted into probate, and Scott Knapp was appointed executor of her estate.

George Knapp died on October 25, 2005. Scott Knapp later filed George Knapp’s will and three codicils thereto with the Probate Court of Bibb County. Thereafter, in 2007, Andrew Knapp filed a petition to probate the will and the first and second codicils, while Scott Knapp filed a petition seeking to probate the third codicil.1 The Grandchildren and Nancy Knapp filed caveats to Scott Knapp’s petition.

Following a trial on the petitions, the probate court found, among other things, that the entire residue of Mary Knapp’s estate was bequeathed to George Knapp. Scott Knapp did not, however, timely conclude the affairs of her estate and distribute the residue to George Knapp, and he failed to file income tax returns for the estate although there had been significant income in the years following Mary Knapp’s death. Scott Knapp also failed to timely pay over or deliver certain custodial accounts, which his parents had created for the Grandchildren, as well as certain savings bonds which were titled in the Grandchildren’s name.

After making its findings, the probate court (i) admitted George Knapp’s will and its first and second codicils to record as proved in solemn form, (ii) denied Scott Knapp’s petition to probate the third codicil, (iii) appointed the county administrator, Robert E. Herndon, as administrator of George Knapp’s estate, and (iv) ordered Scott Knapp to surrender to Herndon any of the decedents’ property in his possession as well as all records of actions and transactions involving the assets of George Knapp following April 15,2000, the date of death of Mary Knapp. The probate court contemporaneously removed Scott Knapp as executor of Mary Knapp’s estate, which it determined had not been completely administered, and appointed Herndon as its administrator.2 Under the terms of the will and the first and second codicils, Scott Knapp and Nancy Knapp stood to inherit one-third each of George Knapp’s estate, while the Grandchildren’s one-third share was to be divided equally between them.

In 2010, the Grandchildren filed motions to assess money damages, attorney fees, CPA fees, additional estate expenses, tax penalties, and interest against Scott Knapp. Nancy Knapp later joined with the Grandchildren in seeking such relief. After an initial motion hearing, the probate court issued an interim order requiring that [488]*488Scott Knapp deliver to Herndon, by December 1, 2010, all financial records remaining in his possession regarding Mary Knapp’s and George Knapp’s estates. Scott Knapp was also directed to provide Herndon with an accounting of sums paid to himself, Nancy Knapp, and the Grandchildren regarding their respective distributive shares of George Knapp’s estate by December 1, 2010, and to send Herndon a compact disk containing copies of the data files on the estates’ accounts by October 1, 2010.

The probate court set another hearing on the matter for December 9, 2010. Scott Knapp failed to appear at the hearing, and the probate court, upon finding that Scott Knapp had failed to comply with the interim order, held him in civil contempt and imposed a civil penalty of $1,000 per day, beginning December 20, 2010, and continuing thereafter until Scott Knapp purged himself of the contempt.

The evidentiary hearing on the Grandchildren’s and Nancy Knapp’s motions for assessment of damages and other relief was held on January 11, 2012. In its subsequent final order, the probate court concluded that Scott Knapp’s failure to turn over the records of the estates of Mary Knapp and George Knapp and to fully account for his dealings with the estates had been, and remained, intentional and without just cause and excuse. It noted that the civil penalty for failing to comply with the court’s order to provide an accounting and to deliver all records of the estate would have exceeded $380,000 as of the hearing date.

The probate court also determined, among other things, the amount of previous distributions from George Knapp’s estate to Scott Knapp, Nancy Knapp, and the Grandchildren, the amount of cash and investments remaining in the estate, and the probable combined value of the remaining real property. Specifically, it found that Nancy Knapp and the Grandchildren had suffered actual damages in amounts not less than: (i) $42,887 for income and estate tax interest and penalties, (ii) $15,873.60 in attorney fees and expenses for Nancy Knapp, plus additional fees for the evidentiary hearing, (iii) $28,220.37 in attorney fees and expenses for the Grandchildren, plus additional fees for the hearing, (iv) $5,559.61 for the surety bond cost to replace supposedly missing stock certificates which were ultimately found in Scott Knapp’s possession, and (v) a decline in value of the real property of the estates during the period following George Knapp’s death and the probate of George Knapp’s will, which amount was “as yet not determined because two parcels of real property remain unsold.”

After the probate court made its findings, it ordered that Scott Knapp receive no further distribution from Mary Knapp’s and George Knapp’s estates, and it directed that “[t]he remainder of the Estates, [489]*489after administration is complete, shall be inherited by and distributed 50% to Nancy Louise Knapp and 50% jointly to [the Grandchildren].”3 Scott Knapp appeals from this order.4

For purposes of our review, it is well established that “[t]he court is the trier of fact in a bench trial, and its findings will be upheld on appeal if there is any evidence to support them.” Page v. Braddy, 255 Ga. App. 124, 126 (564 SE2d 538) (2002). See OCGA § 9-11-52 (a) (in nonjury trials in courts of record, the court’s “[findings shall not be set aside unless clearly erroneous, and due regard shall be given to the opportunity of the trial court to judge the credibility of the witnesses”). However, we review questions of law de novo. See Page, 255 Ga. App. at 126; Suarez v. Halbert, 246 Ga. App. 822, 824 (1) (543 SE2d 733) (2000).

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Bluebook (online)
756 S.E.2d 716, 326 Ga. App. 486, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-estate-of-knapp-gactapp-2014.