Inglis v. Casselberry

137 So. 3d 389, 2013 WL 6212021, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 18905
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedNovember 27, 2013
DocketNo. 2D12-6463
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 137 So. 3d 389 (Inglis v. Casselberry) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Inglis v. Casselberry, 137 So. 3d 389, 2013 WL 6212021, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 18905 (Fla. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

SLEET, Judge.

Richard Inglis, as trustee of the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts,1 appeals two orders entered by the trial court. He appeals the portion of the court’s omnibus order issued November 27, 2012, that granted Roberta Sue Casselberry, the former wife, a continuing writ of garnishment over any disbursements made from the [390]*390Berlinger Discretionary Trusts to or for the benefit of Bruce Berlinger, the former husband. He also appeals the nonfinal order rendered on the same date that made Inglis, as trustee, a party to the former wife’s postdissolution action and subject to the continuing writs of garnishment. Specifically, Inglis argues that the trial court did not have personal jurisdiction over him as the trustee to the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts.

We affirm the order imposing continuing writs of garnishment without further comment. See Berlinger v. Casselberry, No. 2D12-6470, 133 So.3d 961, (Fla. 2d DCA Nov. 27, 2013). We write only to address the circuit court’s order substituting Inglis as a party. Because we agree that Inglis voluntarily submitted himself to the court’s jurisdiction, we affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

This case arises from the same set of suspect circumstances outlined in the companion case, Berlinger, slip op. at 1-6, 133 So.3d at 961. In summary, Berlinger and Casselberry divorced after thirty years of marriage. Pursuant to a marital settlement agreement, ratified by the court and incorporated into the final judgment of dissolution, Berlinger agreed to pay Cas-selberry $16,000 a month in permanent alimony. While continuing to live on the substantial proceeds of the family trusts, Berlinger voluntarily stopped paying alimony in May 2011.

When Berlinger stopped paying alimony, Casselberry filed a motion to enforce and for contempt. In August 2011, the parties were able to reach a settlement wherein Berlinger agreed to satisfy a portion of his alimony arrears by liquidating an IRA account. Because a substantial sum remained owing in arrears following the liquidation, the court issued writs of garnishment to SunTrust as the corporate trustee to the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts. When Berlinger continued to avoid his support obligations, Casselberry filed a second motion for civil contempt and enforcement against him. On January 17, 2012, the court issued additional writs of garnishment against SunTrust. Cassel-berry then filed a motion for continuing writ of garnishment against SunTrust seeking to attach the present and future distributions made to or for the benefit of Berlinger from any trust. Berlinger’s attorney, Michael Presley, filed a response in opposition to garnishment on behalf of SunTrust. The trial court set a hearing on that motion for November 6, 2012.

Although a wealthy man, Berlinger undertook an inordinate amount of legal maneuvering to avoid his support obligation to Casselberry. To thwart Casselberry’s attempts to enforce his support obligation, he appointed his attorneys, including In-glis, as trustees to the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts and discreetly transferred his residential property, worth $1,386,000, into a previously undisclosed trust, the Schweiker-Berlinger Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust, of which he was the sole beneficiary. Attorney Presley enlisted the assistance of his longtime friend, Inglis, to prepare the deeds and set up the new trust.

On June 12, 2012, while the garnishment and family law matters were proceeding, the Twentieth Judicial Circuit Probate Court, in Case No. 11-559-CP, removed SunTrust as the corporate trustee of the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts and appointed and substituted Inglis as the new corporate trustee. Pursuant to the court’s order and upon the instructions of Inglis, SunTrust transferred all of the funds and assets of the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts to Inglis’s designated custodian, Rochdale, a securities firm. Inglis immediately assumed the role as trustee and [391]*391managed the funds and disbursements. Thereafter, attorney Presley filed a motion on behalf of SunTrust and Inglis seeking substitution of Inglis for SunTrust as a party to the family law case.2 Inglis personally filed a motion in opposition to Cas-selberry’s discovery requests and a motion in limine to prevent discovery of privileged documents related to the trusts. Additionally, Presley, Inglis, and Berlinger pursued a joint defense agreement in the family law case.

On October 13, 2012, Gary Rudolf, an attorney for SunTrust, noticed an amended motion for substitution of the trustees for hearing on November 6, 2012. The notice was served on Berlinger, Casselber-ry’s counsel, and attorney Presley, who represented both Inglis and Berlinger. On November 5, 2012, one day before the hearing, Inglis withdrew his motion for substitution and filed an action for declaratory relief seeking a declaration that the family trusts at issue were discretionary trusts.

During the November 6, 2012, hearing, Inglis voluntarily appeared and testified that he had already assumed the role of special trustee. He testified that for the past year, the trustees directed that payments be made on behalf of Berlinger to his creditors and utilities, instead of to Berlinger. He acknowledged that Sun-Trust distributed all of the trust assets to him with a final accounting. He testified that the trusts were discretionary and opined that the applicable trust statute, section 736.0504, Florida Statutes (2011), prohibits any creditor, including Cassel-berry, from attaching any distributions paid on behalf or for the benefit of the beneficiary, Berlinger. The trial court sustained repeated objections to attorney Presley’s attempts to offer Inglis’s legal opinion in his capacity as special trustee. The court affirmed that Inglis was formally the special trustee and that he stepped into the shoes of SunTrust; however, the court determined that Inglis should not be allowed to offer further legal conclusions.

Attorney Presley objected to Casselber-ry’s attempt to question Inglis about the deed transferring Berlinger’s residential property to the Schweiker-Berlinger Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust and referred to Inglis’s motion in limine for support. Attorney Presley sought additional relief on behalf of Inglis by requesting that Cas-selberry be prohibited from obtaining certain records concerning distributions from the trust.

During the hearing, the court informed Inglis that there was a hold on the trust assets and funds to comply with the original writs of garnishment. Inglis replied that as the trustee, he had set aside enough funds to comply with the existing writs and to fulfill any additional writs that might be awarded by the court. Inglis expressly agreed to be substituted for SunTrust.

On November 27, 2012, the trial court entered orders granting continuing writs of garnishment against the Berlinger Discretionary Trusts and granting the motion for substitution, which substituted Inglis as the garnishee as to the continuing writs of garnishment. SunTrust remained the garnishee as to the January 17, 2012, writs already granted and in effect prior to In-[392]*392glis’s appointment. Inglis and Berlinger pursued separate appeals. See Berlinger, slip op. at 1,133 So.3d at 963.

II. ANALYSIS

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
137 So. 3d 389, 2013 WL 6212021, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 18905, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/inglis-v-casselberry-fladistctapp-2013.