Lagle v. Marchand's Estate

129 So. 2d 849
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 10, 1961
Docket5183
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 129 So. 2d 849 (Lagle v. Marchand's Estate) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lagle v. Marchand's Estate, 129 So. 2d 849 (La. Ct. App. 1961).

Opinion

129 So.2d 849 (1961)

Maud Braud LAGLE et al.
v.
ESTATE of Octavie Braud MARCHAND et al.

No. 5183.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

April 10, 1961.
Rehearing Denied May 22, 1961.

Blum & Sotile, Donaldsonville, Jos. A. Loret, Baton Rouge, for appellants.

Talbot, LeSueur & Talbot, Napoleonville, for appellees.

Before ELLIS, LOTTINGER, JONES, HERGET and LANDRY, JJ.

*850 HERGET, Judge.

Numerous plaintiffs, alleged to be heirs of Miss Alexandrine Marchand and of her brother Jean Baptiste A. Marchand, brought suit against the estate of the deceased widow of Jean Baptiste A. Marchand, Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, her legatees, Wilmer J. Melancon and Mrs. Una Melancon Chauvin, and against Judge Clyde V. St. Amant and Miriam Attaya, attorneys, (1) for various sums of money and the value of sundry items of movable property of Miss Alexandrine Marchand which Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand is alleged to have appropriated upon Miss Marchand's death; (2) and for moneys and properties which Jean Baptiste A. Marchand bequeathed only the usufruct of to Octavie Braud Marchand, his widow. In the original petition certain alleged plaintiffs were named who would not join in the suit. In a second supplemental petition these parties along with other alleged heirs of these estates, including the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, Archdiocese of New Orleans, were then named defendants and so cited. On page 152 of the transcript plaintiffs offered "extract from the minutes showing preliminary default against each of the defendants who had not filed answer; * * *." The only minutes of the Court reflecting the entry of preliminary defaults are on the dates of January 13, 1960 "against Wilmer Melancon and Una Meloncon Chauvin" who subsequently filed answers; and February 23, 1960 "against Society for the Propagation of the Faith, Archdiocese of New Orleans." These alleged heirs who were made defendants in the second supplemental petition and the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, Archdiocese of New Orleans were not named in the judgment dismissing plaintiffs' suit and, though Citations of Appeal were served upon them, in the absence of a judgment of the Trial Court, there is nothing on appeal before this Court as to said defendants.

Exceptions of no right and no cause of action were maintained dismissing the suit as to Judge St. Amant and judgment was signed thereon. After an exception of vagueness was maintained on behalf of Miss Attaya with reservation to plaintiffs to amend their original petition pursuant to the Court's ruling and a supplemental petition was filed in compliance with the Court's order, suit was dismissed as to Miss Attaya on the motion of counsel for plaintiffs by judgment of non-suit July 13, 1959. No appeals were taken from the judgments of dismissal of the suit against Judge St. Amant and Miss Attaya, so the matter is before us on appeal by plaintiffs from the judgment on the merits dismissing their suit as to the Succession of Octavie Braud Marchand, Wilmer Melancon and Mrs. Una Melancon Chauvin.

The evidence shows that Miss Alexandrine Marchand, Mrs. Philip Braud, her sister, and their brother Mr. Jean Baptiste A. Marchand and his wife Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, were living in the same home though in separate apartments at the time of Miss Marchand's death.

(1) Plaintiffs maintain that upon the death of Miss Alexandrine Marchand, Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand took complete charge of the succession, listed only a part of the property of Miss Marchand, and took possession of an undetermined amount of unaccounted for cash. The evidence reveals Mr. Jean Baptiste A. Marchand had originally accompanied Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand to the office of an attorney for the purpose of opening the succession of Miss Alexandrine Marchand but that he died prior to the date of the opening of the succession and the succession was opened at the instance of his widow, Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand. The record in the succession of Miss Alexandrine Marchand discloses on April 14, 1954 a judgment was signed placing the heirs of decedent in possession, among whom were the plaintiffs in this suit. The testimony introduced on the trial of the instant case also reveals all of the heirs in that succession, including appellants, received their proportionate share in the succession and receipted therefor.

*851 In the present suit, filed on the 16th of December, 1954, plaintiffs contend Miss Alexandrine Marchand had, within the immediate seven years prior to her death, received some $12,000 from oil royalties and $2,000 from the sale of her interest in a certain plantation; that Miss Marchand spent less than an average of $50 a month, or a total of $4,550 during that period, therefore Miss Marchand must have had at least $9,450 in cash in her possession when she died, and in the Succession Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand accounted for only $1,678 cash, consequently the Succession of Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand owes the heirs of Miss Alexandrine Marchand at least $7,772.

On the trial of the case plaintiffs failed to produce any witnesses who saw any money in Miss Marchand's room before or after her death. The Trial Judge concluded, in which we concur, the plaintiffs had failed completely to show that Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand converted to her own use any of the property belonging to Miss Alexandrine Marchand's estate. Though one of the contentions made by plaintiffs was that Miss Marchand "cached" her money in her room because of fear of depositing same in the bank, such contention was not proven and is inconsistent with the testimony of Mr. Irwin J. Mollere, Vice President of the First National Bank of Donaldsonville, that Miss Alexandrine Marchand opened a savings account in that bank in September, 1938 and up until December 31, 1953 there had been no withdrawals from said account and the total amount on deposit of $5,368.84 was then transferred to the estate of Alexandrine Marchand.

As heretofore stated, it is further shown by the evidence that each of the heirs of Miss Marchand, including the plaintiffs herein, accepted their proportionate share of the estate of Miss Marchand whose succession was opened on May 29, 1953 without mentioning or making the contention now made by plaintiffs that at the time Miss Marchand had the sum of $7,772 which had been allegedly appropriated by Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, though at that time and during the life of Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, who died on December 16, 1953, they had the same knowledge they had when they filed this suit of the alleged existence of such money. The Trial Judge dismissed the claim of plaintiffs in respect to these moneys for the reasons the evidence in regard to its existence was purely speculative, and furthermore no evidence was ever offered to show that Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, now deceased, had anything to do whatever with such funds. We are constrained to observe as did the Trial Judge that in this respect the plaintiffs have failed to sustain the burden of proof placed upon them.

(2) Jean Baptiste A. Marchand died in June, 1952 leaving a will in which he bequeathed to his wife, Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, the usufruct of all of his property. Plaintiffs contend the property left by him consisted of a small amount of corporeal movable property and a large amount of money and upon his death Mrs. Octavie Braud Marchand, as usufructuary, took possession of all of the property of his succession and remained in possession of it until her death.

In support of their claim, one of the plaintiffs, Mrs. Lagle, testified that her mother, Mrs. Marie Braud, who was a sister of Jean Baptiste A.

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Related

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Bluebook (online)
129 So. 2d 849, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lagle-v-marchands-estate-lactapp-1961.