U.S. Bank, N.A. v. Wild

340 S.W.3d 139, 2011 Mo. App. LEXIS 218
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedFebruary 22, 2011
DocketNos. SD 30449, SD 30457, SD 30459
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 340 S.W.3d 139 (U.S. Bank, N.A. v. Wild) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
U.S. Bank, N.A. v. Wild, 340 S.W.3d 139, 2011 Mo. App. LEXIS 218 (Mo. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

GARY W. LYNCH, Judge.

James H. Wild, Trustee of the Gene Wild Revocable Trust; The School of the Ozarks, Inc., d/b/a College of the Ozarks; and Cottey College (collectively “Appellants”), appeal the trial court’s judgment on the pleadings in favor of Katherine Cunningham and Laura Cunningham (collectively “the Cunninghams”), in a case brought by U.S. Bank, Trustee of the Gene Wild Insurance Trust, seeking a determination as to the manner in which it is to distribute the corpus of the Insurance Trust.1 Finding that the trial court’s judgment does not comport with the grantor’s stated intent for the Insurance Trust, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.

Factual and Procedural Background

Rule 55.27 authorizes a trial court to enter a judgment based solely on the pleadings. Rule 55.27(b).2 ‘“The party moving for judgment on the pleadings admits, for purposes of the motion, the truth of all well[-]pleaded facts in the opposing party’s pleadings’ ” State ex rel. Nixon v. Am. Tobacco Co., Inc., 34 S.W.3d 122, 134 (Mo.2000) (quoting Barker v. Danner, 903 S.W.2d 950, 957 (Mo.App.1995)). In that context, the pleadings, as stipulated by the parties, reveal the following.

On July 10, 1990, Shirley Gene Wild (“Decedent”) executed a number of estate-planning documents, including the Gene Wild Revocable Trust agreement, which created the Gene Wild Revocable Trust (“Revocable Trust”), and the Gene Wild Insurance Trust agreement, which created the Gene Wild Insurance Trust (“Insurance Trust”) that is the subject of this litigation.

The Revocable Trust named Decedent’s brother, James H. Wild, as Trustee. As thereafter amended,3 the Revocable Trust directs Trustee Wild to make certain specific distributions and then distribute the residue equally to two charitable remainder annuity trusts (“CRATs”). James H. Wild, individually, is the lifetime beneficiary of each CRAT, and College of the Ozarks is the remainder beneficiary of one, and Cottey College is the remainder beneficiary of the other.

[142]*142The Revocable Trust gave Trustee Wild the discretionary authority to pay any applicable estate and inheritance taxes associated with Decedent’s death, with such payment to be charged to the residue before funding the CRATs. It further specified that if such tax payment was undertaken, it was “without reimbursement from Grantor’s Personal Representative, from any beneficiary of insurance from Grant- or’s life or any other person.”

The Insurance Trust was irrevocable in that Decedent retained “no right, power or privilege to alter or amend” it after its execution. Paragraph A of Article VII of the Insurance Trust provides:

A. Outright Gifts. The Trustee shall distribute, outright and free of trust, to each person who is determined under Missouri law to be ultimately responsible for any federal estate tax, state estate or inheritance tax or any other death tax as a result of Grantor’s death (hereinafter “death tax or taxes”),!4] an amount equal to such death taxes for which such person is determined by the Trustee to be responsible under Missouri law, it being Grantor’s intent that such person(s) who receive a gift, devise or bequest as a result of Grantor’s death (or receives property which is otherwise subject to death taxes at Grantor’s death) in effect receives such gift, devise, bequest or other property without being burdened with such death taxes.

Paragraph B of Article VII provides that any funds remaining in the Insurance Trust “[a]fter funding the gift(s) in Paragraph A above,” are to be held first in trust to benefit James H. Wild individually and then, upon his death, distributed to the then-living descendents of Virginia Sue Nance Cunningham.

Decedent passed away June 19, 2005. On March 10, 2006, James H. Wild, in his individual capacity, disclaimed any personal interest in any distributions from the Insurance Trust. The Cunninghams are the living descendents of Virginia Sue Nance Cunningham. Trustee Wild paid Decedent’s death taxes.

U.S. Bank, as second successor trustee of the Insurance Trust, initiated the present action on July 19, 2006, seeking guidance as to the administration of the Insurance Trust, specifically “whether, and to what extent, James H. Wild, the Gene Wild Revocable Trust, or any of its beneficiaries are entitled to distributions under Article VII A of the [Insurance Trust] with respect to federal and state estate taxes[.]” The Cunninghams and both colleges subsequently filed cross-motions for judgment on the pleadings. The trial court granted the Cunninghams’ motion, denied the colleges’ motions, and entered a declaratory judgment finding that only the Cunning-hams were entitled to any distribution from the Insurance Trust. This appeal timely followed.

Standard of Review

The grant of a motion for judgment on the pleadings is proper only if, from the face of the pleadings, the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. State ex rel. Nixon, 34 S.W.3d at 134. Overall, we review a grant of judgment on the pleadings de novo, without deference to the trial court’s ruling. Cures Without Cloning v. Pund, 259 S.W.3d 76, 80 (Mo.App.2008). A motion for judgment on the pleadings should be sustained “only where under the conceded facts, a judg[143]*143ment different from that pronounced could not be rendered notwithstanding any evidence which might be produced.” McIntosh v. Foulke, 360 Mo. 481, 228 S.W.2d 757, 761 (1950).

Discussion

Appellants present two points for our review. The second one is dispositive of this appeal.

In their second point, Appellants contend that the trial court misapplied the law in granting the Cunninghams’ motion for judgment on the pleadings because it was Decedent’s intent that those receiving gifts under the Revocable Trust do so without being burdened by death taxes. We agree.

Before beginning our analysis, however, we observe that we are in much the same position as Decedent was on the date she initially executed her estate plan, i.e., neither the amount of her death taxes nor the amount available for distribution from the Insurance Trust are known. Unlike Decedent’s position when she initially executed her estate plan, however, the mere existence of this lawsuit supports that the latter amount is greater than zero. It is from this perspective that we proceed to consider Decedent’s intent.

In general, Missouri courts use the same rules when construing both wills and trusts. Commerce Bank, N.A. v. Blasdel, 141 S.W.3d 434, 443 n. 9 (Mo.App.2004). Ultimately, the paramount rule in construing a trust is that the intent of the grantor is supreme. First Natl. Bank of Kansas City v. Hyde, 363 S.W.2d 647, 652 (Mo.1962). This intent must be gleaned, if possible, from the trust instrument as a whole.

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Related

In Re Gene Wild Ins. Trust
340 S.W.3d 139 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2011)

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Bluebook (online)
340 S.W.3d 139, 2011 Mo. App. LEXIS 218, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/us-bank-na-v-wild-moctapp-2011.