Succession of Becker

704 So. 2d 825, 1997 WL 749535
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 3, 1997
Docket96-CA-2169
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 704 So. 2d 825 (Succession of Becker) 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
Succession of Becker, 704 So. 2d 825, 1997 WL 749535 (La. Ct. App. 1997).

Opinion

704 So.2d 825 (1997)

SUCCESSION OF Rudolph F. BECKER, III.

No. 96-CA-2169.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit.

December 3, 1997.
Rehearing Denied February 17, 1998.

*826 William L. Von Hoene, Jr., New Orleans, for Appellants William F. Finegan and Patricia McGee Becker.

Vincent T. LoCoco, Henrik A. Pontoppidan, Vincent B. LoCoco, New Orleans, for Appellees Diane Catherine Becker and Pamela McGinn Becker-Koch.

Before CIACCIO, JONES and WALTZER, JJ.

CIACCIO, Judge.

Appellants, William F. Finegan, the executor of the estate of the late Judge Rudolph F. Becker, III, and Patricia McGee Becker, the decedent's surviving spouse, appeal from a trial court judgment in favor of Diane Catherine Becker and Pamela McGinn Becker-Koch, the adult children and forced heirs of the decedent. The trial court judgment requires Mrs. Becker to furnish security in the amount of $157,371.88 and additional security, if needed, pursuant to LSA-C.C. art. 890.

Judge Becker died on August 29, 1991. He was married twice, first to Rosemary McGinn, of which marriage two children were born, Diane and Pamela, appellees herein. The first marriage ended in divorce. Judge Becker subsequently married Patricia McGee. No children were born of this marriage.

Judge Becker left a last will and testament in olographic form dated April 13, 1991, which was probated on September 24, 1991. In his last will and testament, he left to Mrs. Becker his entire interest in all property acquired during their marriage. Decedent left to his two adult daughters his separate property, particularly, a particular legacy of his interest in a leasehold estate in Gonzales, Louisiana and his interest in the related sublease agreement with Burger King for its outlet in Gonzales. In addition, decedent left to his surviving spouse the lifetime usufruct over the lease and sublease. His testament expressly provided, "I direct that the usufruct of all my property which I leave to my wife be with full seizin and without bond."

On February 9, 1994, the Becker heirs filed a petition to take possession of the legacy of the separate property, in full ownership, without the legacy being burdened by *827 the usufruct in favor of Mrs. Becker. The trial court denied the petition, and this Court affirmed on appeal.[1] On January 10, 1996, the Becker heirs filed a motion to have Mrs. Becker furnish security in the amount of $148,350.17 pursuant to LSA-C. C. art. 890. Following a hearing, the trial judge rendered judgment in favor of the Becker heirs. The trial judge stated in his reasons for judgment:

Pursuant to Louisiana Civil Code Article 890 and Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure Article 3154.1, the forced heirs are entitled to security on the forced portion which must be posted on or before the rendering of the judgment of possession.
In order to determine the amount of security required, a calculation of the forced portion was made by this court. The court finds that the Burger King leasehold interest is a consumable but that it cannot be valued by the capitalization of income method or any other valuation method, and therefore the court finds that the value of the Burger King leasehold interest for purposes of determining the forced portion of the decedent's forced heirs is the sum of all rentals actually receive and to be received by the usufructuary over the life of the leasehold, reduced by the amounts of such rental income paid out on the underlying mortgage.
Accordingly, the valuation of the forced portion is as follows:
The Sworn Descriptive List filed by the executor and Mrs. Patricia Becker on March 25, 1994 discloses that the net assets of the decedent's estate amounted to $122,123.79 on the date of the decedent's death, August 29, 1991. The net amount of $81,543.66, which represents a realtor's appraisal of the Burger King lease less a mortgage balance on the leasehold interest [$138,854.00 — $57,310.34], is deducted from the above amount, leaving a net amount of $40,580.13. To this last figure is added one-half of the net proceeds of $143,617.02 or $71,808.51 from the sale after the decedent's death of Highlands, N.C. real estate. The total of $40,580.13 and $71,808.51 is $112,388.64. The daughters' one-half net forced portion or legitime is valued at $56,194.32.
The amount of net money received on the Burger King lease from September 1, 1992 through February 29, 1996 is $101,177.56.
The total of the two above sums of $56,194.32 and $101,177.56 amounts to $157,371.88. This is presently the amount for which Mrs. Patricia Becker is to furnish security.
Although security is ordered with respect to the foregoing amount, the court notes that the amount of the forced portions shall be reduced to the extent that Louisiana inheritance taxes are ultimately advanced out of the succession assets for the benefit of the forced heirs.

Appellants list several issues and assignments of error in their appeal brief, although not all are argued. They argue that the trial judge exceeded the scope of the hearing by making a calculation of the forced portion and determining the existence of an impingement on the legitime and requiring bond for property left to Mrs. Becker in full ownership prior to traversal or amendment of the descriptive list and a reduction of the disposable portion. Appellants further contend the trial judge erred in requiring Mrs. Becker to post a bond pursuant to LSA-C.C. art. 890 because the decedent specifically waived the requirement of bond in his testament. They also contend the trial judge erred in determining that the usufruct granted to Mrs. Becker over the Burger King lease was a consumable. Appellants argue that in the event we find Mrs. Becker is required to post security the amount should be limited to the value of the property subject to the usufruct only and should not be required until the usufructuary has been placed in possession of the property subject to the usufruct.

The first issue we will address is whether the trial judge erred in requiring Mrs. Becker to post security under LSA-C.C. Art. 890 *828 where the testator expressly dispensed with the posting of bond.

At the time of Judge Becker's death, LSA-C.C. art. 890 read as follows:

If the deceased spouse is survived by descendants and shall not have disposed by testament of his share in the community property, the surviving spouse shall have a legal usufruct over so much of that share as may be inherited by the descendants. This usufruct terminates when the surviving spouse contracts another marriage, unless confirmed by testament for life or for a shorter period.
The deceased may by testament grant a usufruct for life or for a shorter period to the surviving spouse over all or part of his separate property.
A usufruct authorized by this Article is to be treated as a legal usufruct and is not an impingement upon legitime.
If the usufruct authorized by this Article affects the rights of heirs other than children of the marriage between the deceased and the surviving spouse or affects separate property, security may be requested by the naked owner. [Emphasis ours]

(Acts 1981, No. 919, Sec. 1; Amended by Acts 1982, No. 445, Sec. 1; Acts 1990, No. 1075, Sec. 1, eff. July 27, 1990).

Article 916 of the Civil Code of 1870, the predecessor of LSA-C.C. art.

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Related

In re the Succession of Beard
147 So. 3d 753 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2014)
Succession of Becker
739 So. 2d 925 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1999)

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Bluebook (online)
704 So. 2d 825, 1997 WL 749535, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/succession-of-becker-lactapp-1997.