Marchand v. Marchand

2007 NMCA 138, 171 P.3d 309, 142 N.M. 795
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 27, 2007
DocketNo. 26,558
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 2007 NMCA 138 (Marchand v. Marchand) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Marchand v. Marchand, 2007 NMCA 138, 171 P.3d 309, 142 N.M. 795 (N.M. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

OPINION

KENNEDY, Judge.

{1} Plaintiff Joshua Marchand (Joshua) appeals from the district court’s summary judgment order. Joshua’s issues on appeal involve the proper distribution of an award from the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 (the Fund), which was awarded after his father, Alfred G. Marchand (Alfred), died on September 11, 2001. The Special Master, appointed by the United States Attorney General to oversee the Fund, determined a final award amount which was to be distributed, in part, to Joshua, to his stepmother, Rebecca Marchand (Rebecca), and to her son Trae Hale (Trae) in accordance with New Mexico intestate succession laws and wrongful death laws. Joshua argues that the district court erred in its distribution of the award from the Fund because the award was not distributed in accordance with New Mexico intestate succession laws and wrongful death laws. Specifically, Joshua is requesting that this Court order that he be awarded the entire economic portion of the Fund awarded by the district court to Rebecca, because after collateral offsets are taken into account, the entire amount is his legal and rightful share of the proceeds.

{2} We affirm the summary judgment order on two of the three issues. We hold that the district court did not err in awarding the two $100,000 non-economic loss awards to Rebecca and Trae. We further hold that the district court did not err in dividing the $250,000 non-economic loss award to the Estate between Joshua and Rebecca, nor did it err in dismissing the other claims raised against Rebecca for fraud, improper accounting, and malfeasance. However, for the reasons stated below, we hold that the district court erred in awarding the balance of the final award to Rebecca, and we remand for further proceedings on that issue.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

{3} Alfred was a flight attendant on United Airlines Flight 175, which crashed into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Alfred was survived by his widow Rebecca, his son, Joshua, and his stepson, Trae. Alfred died intestate, leaving no Last Will and Testament. Alfred’s Estate (the Estate) was probated in the Probate Court of Otero County, on the application of Rebecca, who was appointed Personal Representative of the Estate on September 17, 2001. An estate inventory was filed with the Probate Court. A Final Account and Report was also filed with the Probate Court. After a hearing, the probate of the Estate was closed and Rebecca was discharged as Personal Representative by order of the Probate Court on December 5, 2003.

{4} On November 28, 2003, while the Estate was still in probate, Rebecca filed a claim with the Fund as Personal Representative of the Estate, on behalf of herself and all of the heirs and dependents of Alfred. Rebecca also retained a law firm in New York City with expertise in preparation and litigation of compensation claims filed with the Fund. Rebecca personally prepared documents required to process a claim and worked with an economist who prepared the “Economic Loss Award Analysis Utilizing Special Master’s Methodology for Mr. Alfred Marchand” as evidence of Alfred’s economic losses. On April 29, 2004, Rebecca traveled to New York to testify at a hearing before the Special Master, who requested evidence to be presented in person to corroborate the documents already in evidence. As part of the claim for compensation in Section Ilj of the Fund compensation application, Rebecca was required to submit to the Special Master a plan for distribution of any award received from the Fund. Allegedly, Joshua did not participate in the preparation or presentation of the claim, although Rebecca repeatedly requested that he do so.

{5} The record indicates that although Rebecca submitted a distribution plan during the claims process, the plan was not approved by the Special Master. On June 24, 2004, the Special Master sent a letter to Rebecca notifying her that a final award determination had been made. The letter contained no distribution plan and stated that the award would be paid to Rebecca, as the “Personal Representative, who is legally obligated to distribute the award in accordance with the laws of the decedent’s domicile” and that the distribution must be based on “either an agreement of all potential beneficiaries” or at the “direction of a court of competent jurisdiction in accordance with the law of the decedent’s domicile.” On June 28, 2004, the Special Master sent a second letter to Rebecca providing her with specific information about the $769,971.88 final award described therein and the time for payment of the award.

{6} On July 19, 2004, Joshua filed a Verified Complaint for Temporary Restraining Order, Injunctive Relief, Declaratory Relief, Accounting, and Damages against Rebecca, both individually and as Personal Representative of the Estate. Joshua alleged that during the probate of the Estate, Rebecca breached her fiduciary duties and took separate property belonging to Alfred prior to them marriage, including a home owned by Alfred, giving no separate property belonging to Alfred to Joshua. He further alleged that Rebecca was about to receive, as the purported Personal Representative of the Estate, an additional payment of $769,971.88 from the Fund, and that Rebecca proposed to take $769,971.88 and distribute only $70,000 to Joshua, retaining the remainder for herself and her son Trae.

{7} Joshua also filed a motion for temporary restraining order on July 19, 2004, arguing that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage would result to Joshua because he just received verbal notice that the funds from the final award would be distributed to Rebecca on July 19, 2004, if Joshua did not agree to a settlement by July 19th and a release of any claims to the Fund award. The district court issued a temporary restraining order on July 19, 2004, ordering Rebecca to be enjoined and restrained from distributing any money from the Fund and it ordered her to deposit the same into the Court registry.

{8} On July 27, 2004, Rebecca responded to Joshua’s complaint that she is the surviving widow of Alfred. She further stated that the federal government, pursuant to the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act (Air Stabilization Act) 49 U.S.C.A. § 40101 (2001), established an administrative process for the determination of claims resulting from the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack. Rebecca contended that under federal law, approval of the award by the Special Master was final and not subject to judicial review, see Air Stabilization Act § 405(b)(3), 49 U.S.C.A. 40101, and any review of the award is prohibited by federal law. Eventually, the parties stipulated that the probate be removed to the district court, and that any payments received from the Fund be administered by Rebecca as Personal Representative in a supervised administration, and that any payments be held in an interest bearing account.

{9} On July 27, 2004, Rebecca filed a motion for subsequent administration in the probate court, which stated that she was the duly qualified Personal Representative of the Estate until it was settled by the probate court on December 20, 2003. It further stated that other property had been discovered since the settlement of the Estate because the Estate was eligible for a distribution of funds as a final award from the Fund. Therefore, the motion stated that reappointment of Rebecca was necessary for the administration of the subsequently discovered property of the award from the Fund.

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Related

Marchand v. Marchand
2008 NMSC 065 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2008)
Marchand v. Marchand
171 P.3d 309 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2007)

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Bluebook (online)
2007 NMCA 138, 171 P.3d 309, 142 N.M. 795, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marchand-v-marchand-nmctapp-2007.