McKennon v. McFall

127 Tenn. 393
CourtTennessee Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 15, 1912
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 127 Tenn. 393 (McKennon v. McFall) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
McKennon v. McFall, 127 Tenn. 393 (Tenn. 1912).

Opinion

Me. Justice Williams

delivered the opinion of the Court.

This suit was commenced in the chancery court of Maury county by a bill of the executors of the estate of J. M. Sargent, deceased, to enjoin the collection of a judgment rendered against them by the trustee of the county in both assessment proceedings begun before that official by one of the revenue agents of the State; the trustee having held taxable property of the testator which had been by the executors omitted from assessment returns for the years 1908 and 1909.

The chancellor granted partial relief to the complainant executors, holding that what may, for convenience, be denominated as the “Mississippi assets” of the testator were not taxable in Tennessee, but that what may be likewise termed the “Canadian assets” were taxable for both of said years. . 'T-SJI,',.-1

Both the complainant executors and the defendants nave appealed and assigned errors. '

The cause stands for trial upon an agreed state of facts, which may be summarized as follows:

(1) That testator died in Maury county, on April 8, 1907, there domiciled; but for many.years prior to his removal to that county on January 17, 1907, he had been a citizen of and domiciled in the State of Mississippi. Therefore, no question is made as to the taxability of his property for the year 1907;. he not being domiciled in Tennessee on the test tax date.of that year, January 10th

[398]*398(2) In May, 1907, the will was offered for probate in Maury county, but was, by reason of a contest, made on issue of devisavit vel non, not probated until July, 1908, when said will was there probated; and complainants qualified as executors thereof, and took over all the assets ever physically located in Tennessee, consisting of about $14,000 in the Phoenix National Bank, in Maury county. The Tennessee administration of the estate is yet pending.

(3) In 1907 John H. Phalen, a resident citizen oí Mississippi, was appointed temporary administrator oí “the Mississippi estate,” consisting of notes, stock ($1,-,800) in a Mississippi bank, and deposits in banks located in that State, in all about $44,000, all of which assets had also, prior to the death of testator, been in ‘the hands of Phalen, who then held same as agent oí the decedent, Sargent, under a written power of attorney; none of same ever having been physically in the State of Tennessee.

(4) In August, 1908, the complainant executors filed the will for probate in a court in Mississippi, and there qualified as executors of said will, taking over as such, and under orders of that court, from Phalen, the assets he had taken over as temporary administrator, and the executors have there paid out funds in debts, costs, and to legatees in the sum of $27,000.

(5) Oanandian assets. At his death testator was the owner of $16,415.21 on deposit in a bank of Montreal, Canada; and/in order to meet the grounds of refusal of the bank to permit a withdrawal of the deposit by [399]*399them In virtue of their appointment as executors in Tennessee, or in Mississippi, the executors arranged for a withdrawel under an indemnity bond, under which the funds were transmitted to the National City Bank, of New York City, in. February, 1910. The Phoenix National Bank, of Columbia, Maury county, assisted in making this arrangement; and by an arrangement between these two banks and the executors a special acT count was opened by the latter in their names as executors in the Columbia bank, against which they checked, the checks being sent to and approved by the New York bank, which held the funds to the credit of the Columbia bank. Before Canadian authorities would permit the deposits to be withdrawn from the Dominion, they required payment to be made of the local inheritance or succession tax, which was paid out of “Mississippi as•sets.” After deposit of the “Canadian funds” in New ■York City, the exequtors on March 20, 1909, entered same on their inventories returned in Mississippi, “where under the law of said State they became liable for the same in their capacity as executors. tinder the statutes of Mississippi,” where they have been in large part disbursed by vouchers approved by the Mississippi court.'

(5) All of said funds, except the “Canadian funds,” have been duly assessed for taxation in Mississippi for the years 1908 and 1909, and there paid by the executors. ' -

(G) “Under the laws.of ihe State of Mississippi these executors are not allowed to bring funds in Mississippi i [400]*400crat of said State for any purpose, but said laws require the administration of.said estate to be made in said State, under and by the laws of said State.”

(7) The assessment by the trustee of Maury county, and adjudication based thereon, was of all funds, plus Statutory penálties and costs.

It thus appears that we have excluded from consideration any taxes for 1907; and, therefore, of all questions that might be incident to the domicile of J. M. Sargent, deceased, being in Tennessee at the date of his death, April s, 1907.

The- contentions made by the parties, respectively, concern thé estate or estates administered under the will by the executors, and thus involve the construction and application of our tax statute in relation to the property of ¿ 'decedent who leaves property in this and in another State.

The General Assessment Act (Acts 1907, ch. 602) provides as follows:

“Sec. 5'. The basis of all assessments shall 'be as follows': . .
“'(■2) To assess the property held by executors' and administrators in the county ... in which the de-"cederit resided at the time of his death until such shall have been distributed; but if the deceased lived in another State, then the property shall be assessed where the-personal representative resides.”
“Sec. 8. All personal property of every kind shall be assessed under the following classification; . . .
[401]*401“Class 6. All bonds, except United States bonds,, and all shares of stock. ...
“Class 7. Notes, duebills, choses in action, accounts, mortgages, or any other evidences of indebtedness, and money in hand or on deposit or invested in any manner in this State or elsewhere not otherwise assessed; '
“Class 8a. The fact that any personal property may be deposited, incumbered, or transferred or pledged as collateral or loaned or out of the possession of the owner, whether the same be in or out of this State', shall not in any wise excuse the same from being listed and reported for taxation.”
“Sec. 16. Persons acting as executors . . . shall make a return of the property, money, credits and effects held or controlled by them in said capacity, separate from their individual returns, and same shall be listed for taxation.” •: ■

Mississippi Assets. In respect of what' have been termed “Mississippi assets,” the defendants’ insistence, under assignment of error, is that the chancellor erred in holding these to be nontaxable in this State; that the situs of his estate for taxation was fixed at date of the testator’s death in Tennessee, his domicile, which situs could only be changed by his removal from the State before death; that Acts 1907, ch. 602, sec.

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Bluebook (online)
127 Tenn. 393, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mckennon-v-mcfall-tenn-1912.