Terry v. Terry

565 So. 2d 997, 1990 WL 88901
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 26, 1990
DocketCA 89 0798
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 565 So. 2d 997 (Terry v. Terry) 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
Terry v. Terry, 565 So. 2d 997, 1990 WL 88901 (La. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

565 So.2d 997 (1990)

Edna Shorter TERRY
v.
Curtis David TERRY.

No. CA 89 0798.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

June 26, 1990.

*998 Kenneth A. Goodwin, New Orleans, for plaintiff, appellant.

Henry R. Liles, Lake Charles, for defendant, appellant.

Before EDWARDS, LANIER and FOIL, JJ.

EDWARDS, Judge.

Plaintiff, Edna S. Terry, and defendant, Curtis David Terry, have both appealed from a judgment of partition of community *999 property. Mr. Terry asserts that the trial court erred, as follows:

1. By classifying a 1977 overriding royalty as a community asset;

2. By rescinding a pension granted to Mr. Terry by a community corporation, Three S & T Oil Company, Inc.;

3. By failing to find that Mrs. Terry had mismanaged a community corporation, Spanish Trail Arms, Inc.; and

4. By rejecting the claims for reimbursement for separate funds expended for the preservation and maintenance of the houseboat, Miss M, a community asset.

Mrs. Terry assigns the following two errors:

1. The trial court erred in classifying Mrs. Terry's individual retirement account as a community asset; and

2. The trial court erred by assigning a value of $77,000 to a promissory note executed by Spanish Trail Arms, Inc., to Three S & T Oil Company, Inc.

OVERRIDING ROYALTY

The parties do not dispute that the overriding royalty (ORR) was acquired in 1977 during the marriage. However, Mr. Terry alleges that the ORR was granted to him as compensation by Goldking Production Company in return for consulting services. Mr. Terry argues that, after the termination of the community in 1980, all payments from the ORR became his separate property. The trial court classified the ORR as a community asset.

An "Assignment of Oil and Gas Leases and a Bill of Sale" from Three S & T Company, Inc. (3S & T) to Goldking Properties Company (Goldking) was signed on February 23, 1977. On the same day, Goldking executed an assignment of the ORR to Curtis David Terry. The assignment of the ORR recited that it was made for $10 and other consideration. The receipt and sufficiency of the consideration was acknowledged in the instrument. Both the assignment of the leases and of the ORR were effective February 1, 1977. The ORR was for 12½% of 8/8 of all of the production covered by the oil and gas leases. By an agreement dated February 1, 1977, Curtis Terry was to provide consulting services on the assigned leases to Goldking Production Company (Production).[1] By the terms of the agreement, the services were to be provided at no charge to Production or any other satellite company. The services were not on a regular basis. Mr. Terry was called when needed.

Mr. Henry Speyrer, a former senior vice-president with Production, testified by deposition. Mr. Speyrer stated that the contract was with Mr. Terry, personally, because only he had the necessary knowledge to provide the consultation services Production needed in managing the leases. Mr. Speyrer testified that the leases were assigned to Johnson Oil and Gas Corporation in 1984.

Malcolm Johnson of Johnson Oil and Gas Corporation (Johnson Oil) also testified by deposition. At the time the leases were assigned to Johnson Oil, Mr. Johnson was aware that the lease was burdened with the ORR. If Mr. Johnson had not wanted to honor the ORR, Mr. Johnson testified that he had the option of not entering into the assignment.

On September 10, 1984, Johnson Oil executed an agreement with Mr. Terry to provide consulting services with virtually the same wording as the agreement with Production. The services were to be provided for the remainder of the original agreement with Production and at no cost to Johnson Oil. Neither consulting agreement contained any language relating to or referring to the ORR.

Property acquired during the existence of the community is presumed to be community. LSA-C.C. arts. 2338 and 2340. The classification of the property is fixed at the time of the acquisition. Cooper v. Heirs of Cooper, 421 So.2d 314, 317 (La. App. 1st Cir.1982). Either spouse may rebut *1000 the presumption. LSA-C.C. art. 2340. The party asserting the separate nature of the property has the burden of overcoming the strong presumption in favor of the community. The proof must be strict, clear, positive, and legally certain. Succession of Lindsey, 477 So.2d 148, 153 (La. App. 1st Cir.1985).

A mineral right is an incorporeal immovable. It is alienable and heritable. LSA-R.S. 31:18. The basic mineral rights are the mineral servitude, the mineral royalty, and the mineral lease. These mineral rights are classified as real rights. LSA-R.S. 31:16. Overriding royalties are, therefore, classified as real rights and incorporeal immovables. See Duncan v. Paragon Resources, Inc., 417 So.2d 850, 854 (La. App. 3d Cir.), cert. denied, 421 So.2d 908 (La.1982); Robichaux v. Pool, 209 So.2d 77, 79 (La.App. 1st Cir.1968).

The overriding royalty was acquired during the marriage. The obligation of Mr. Terry to provide the personal consulting services will lapse if he is not in good health or at his death, but the overriding royalty will continue. It is also heritable. See LSA-R.S. 31:18. The assignment of the overriding royalty provides that the consideration was received and was sufficient. Neither the assignment of the leases nor the assignment of the ORR refers to the requirement for consulting services. The consulting agreement does not contain any language that provides that the ORR serves as the compensation for the consulting services.

In Mr. Speyrer's and Mr. Johnson's opinion, the ORR was paid as compensation for the consulting services. This is not supported by the documentary evidence or by the nature of an ORR.

Great deference is given to the trier of facts and findings when the findings are based on determinations regarding the credibility of the witnesses. Rosell v. ESCO, 549 So.2d 840, 844 (La.1989). A reasonable factfinder could have rejected the testimony of Mr. Terry, Mr. Speyrer, and Mr. Johnson.

The defendant failed to meet his burden of overcoming the strong presumption in favor of the designation of property acquired during the marriage as community. The trial court did not err in classifying the ORR as community property.

PENSION

Mr. Terry argues that the creation of a pension plan funded by an undisputed community corporation, 3S & T, from its assets, was a legitimate and valid act of the board of directors. Mrs. Terry claims that the plan substantially and wrongfully depleted the assets of the corporation and was done for that reason. The great majority of the stock of 3S & T is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Terry. The trial court agreed with Mrs. Terry's claims and rescinded the plan.

The defendant, Mr. Terry, was enjoined from selling, alienating, mortgaging, encumbering, injuring, and disposing of any of the community property by an order signed on August 3, 1979. Mr. and Mrs. Terry later agreed to liquidate 3S & T. On June 16, 1986, the parties agreed to modify the previously issued injunction and restraining order prohibiting alienation or transfer of community assets to allow the liquidation of the community corporation.

The court ordered that, upon the surrender of the community stock of 3S & T to the corporation, all of the assets of the corporation would be distributed to Mr. Terry and immediately transferred to two trustees "to hold in trust until the parties voluntarily or judicially divide such assets." Mr.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
565 So. 2d 997, 1990 WL 88901, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/terry-v-terry-lactapp-1990.