Rasmussen v. Lee

916 P.2d 98
Procedural entryThis page is a short order in Rasmussen v. Lee. Read the opinion of the Court — 276 Mont. 84
Montana Supreme Court·Decided May 9, 1996·No. 95-272·Published

Opinion

916 P.2d 98 (1996)

Stanley RASMUSSEN, Personal Representative of the Estate of Fred Pelzman, Deceased, Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
Joe R. LEE, Defendant and Appellant.

No. 95-272.

Supreme Court of Montana.

Submitted on Briefs February 15, 1996.
Decided April 9, 1996.
Order Denying Rehearing May 9, 1996.

*99 Gorham E. Swanberg and Matthew Hutchison, James, Gray & McCafferty, Great Falls, for Appellant.

John P. Wuerthner, Wuerthner & Wuerthner, Great Falls, Kenneth R. Olson, Attorney at Law, Great Falls, for Respondent.

ERDMANN, Justice.

This is an appeal from a decision of the Ninth Judicial District Court, Teton County, granting summary judgment on the claim of unlawful detainer in favor of Stanley Rasmussen, personal representative of the estate of Fred Pelzman (the estate). We affirm.

Joe Lee has requested that we strike certain evidence referenced in the estate's brief. The evidence referred to was not considered by this Court in our decision. Lee's request is therefore moot and we choose not to rule on his motion to strike.

We restate the issues as follows:

1. Did the District Court err in granting summary judgment in favor of the estate on the estate's claim of unlawful detainer?

2. Did the District Court err in requiring Lee to post a $60,000 supersedeas bond?

FACTS

Fred Pelzman owned an 800 acre ranch in Teton County, north of Choteau. Lee and his wife moved to Choteau in 1977. Lee struck up an acquaintance with Pelzman and subsequently entered into a series of transactions with him. They apparently entered into a work/share agreement in 1977, but no copy of that agreement was produced.

On July 25, 1978, Lee prepared a lease between his wife and Pelzman covering a two-year period which began in November 1977 and ended in November 1980. The lease covered the ranch, fifty-five cows, and two bulls for an annual rental of $3,000. Lee also drafted a "Right of First Refusal," dated February 15, 1978, purporting to grant to Lee the right to purchase the Pelzman ranch for fair market value. Five weeks later, Lee drafted another document which was also entitled a "Right of First Refusal" granting to him the right to purchase the ranch for $120,000.

After the lease between Lee's wife and Pelzman expired, Lee drafted another lease. The second lease was between himself and Pelzman and covered the ranch, fifty cows, and two bulls for $3,000 per year. The lease commenced January 1, 1981, and expired by its own terms on December 31, 1985.

Pelzman died in May 1986. Following his death, his estate wrote two letters to Lee giving Lee notice that his lease would be terminated on December 31, 1986, which included a one-year extension by implication. The estate demanded possession of the ranch and cattle on or before January 1, 1987. Lee refused to relinquish the property.

In September 1986, Lee filed an action for specific performance to exercise his option in purchasing Pelzman's ranch and cattle for fair market value. The district court determined that Lee had no option, but rather a *100 right of first refusal which had not come into effect because there was no notice of any intent by Pelzman or his estate to sell. The district court's decision was affirmed by this Court in Lee v. Shaw (1991), 251 Mont. 118, 822 P.2d 1061.

In March 1987, the estate filed an action asking that Lee's lease be terminated. The complaint was amended in April 1989 to allege an action for unlawful detainer. The issue of Lee's right to possession of the ranch was bifurcated from the damage issue pursuant to Lee's motion.

In the meantime, the estate executed a purchase and sell agreement dated July 10, 1992, with another party. Lee brought an action against Pelzman's estate for specific performance to enforce the agreement giving Lee the right of first refusal to buy the ranch for a specified price. The district court concluded, and we agreed, that Lee waived his right of first refusal and therefore the ranch was available for other offers. Estate of Pelzman (1993), 261 Mont. 461, 863 P.2d 1019.

As for the present bifurcated action, the District Court found there was no genuine issue of material fact and concluded that summary judgment was appropriate for the unlawful detainer action. The court found that Lee was notified by the estate in June 1986 that his lease would terminate on January 1, 1987. The court concluded that the continued holding by Lee of the property from that date triggered the unlawful detainer statute. Accordingly, the District Court granted summary judgment in favor of Pelzman's estate on April 21, 1995, and ordered Lee to vacate the premises. From that decision, Lee appeals.

Lee requested a stay of the District Court's order pending appeal. The District Court granted Lee's request and set a supersedeas bond in the amount of $60,000 to cover damages incurred by the estate due to Lee's continuous possession of the ranch during the course of this appeal. Lee also appeals from the court's setting of the supersedeas bond.

ISSUE 1

Did the District Court err in granting summary judgment in favor of the estate on the estate's claim of unlawful detainer?

We review a district court's grant of summary judgment using the same evaluation as the district court based on Rule 56, M.R.Civ.P. Bruner v. Yellowstone County (1995), 272 Mont. 261, 264, 900 P.2d 901, 903.

The movant must demonstrate that no genuine issue of material fact exists. Once this has been accomplished, the burden then shifts to the non-moving party to prove, by more than mere denial and speculation, that a genuine issue does exist. Having determined that genuine issues of fact do not exist, the court must then determine whether the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. We review the legal determinations made by a district court as to whether the court erred.

Bruner, 900 P.2d at 903 (citations omitted).

In its order granting summary judgment and requiring restitution of premises, the District Court found that "Lee has presented no sworn evidence that demonstrates any genuine issue of material fact as to his claimed right to continued possession of the property in question, as is his burden in a summary judgment proceeding, once the proponent of summary judgment has demonstrated the lack of such issues of fact."

On appeal, Lee claims a question of fact exists as to whether the estate consented to his remaining on the property. Such consent would be fatal to a claim of unlawful detainer. In reviewing Lee's brief in opposition to the summary judgment motion and the transcript of the District Court hearing, we have determined that Lee did not present to the District Court the argument that the estate consented to Lee's possession of the property. We will not address an issue presented for the first time on appeal. Fandrich v. Capital Ford Lincoln Mercury (1995), 272 Mont. 425, 431, 901 P.2d 112, 115-16. Therefore, the issue of the estate's consent is not before us.

*101 Lee also claims a question of fact exists as to whether the ag

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