Williams v. Faucett

579 So. 2d 572, 1989 Ala. LEXIS 700, 1989 WL 138361
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedSeptember 29, 1989
Docket87-1519, 87-1520
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 579 So. 2d 572 (Williams v. Faucett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Williams v. Faucett, 579 So. 2d 572, 1989 Ala. LEXIS 700, 1989 WL 138361 (Ala. 1989).

Opinion

SHORES, Justice.

Jerry R. and James F. Williams, residual legatees, appeal from a judgment in favor of Charlene Knight Faucett, Frankie Faye Faucett Schoel, Charles Faucett, specific legatees, and Citizens National Bank of Shawmut (“Bank”), mortgagee of an interest in certain land; in that judgment the court ordered certain lands sold to satisfy specific bequests and to pay debts of the estate.

Dollie Mae Finch, a widow, died on April 26, 1983, leaving a last will and testament that provided, in pertinent part:

“ITEM 1
“I direct that all of my just debts be paid by my Executor, hereinafter named, as soon after my demise as can conveniently be done.
[574]*574“ITEM II
“I give and bequeath to my niece, FRANKIE FAYE FAUCETT, and to my nephew, CHARLES FAUCETT, the sum of ONE THOUSAND — ($1,000.00)— DOLLARS each.
“ITEM III
“I give and bequeath to my sister, CHARLENE KNIGHT FAUCETT, if she is living at the time of my death, a sum equal to 10% of the appraised value of my estate as accepted by the Internal Revenue Service on my estate tax return.
“ITEM IV
“I give and bequeath to my sister, MARY KNIGHT WILLIAMS, if she is living at the time of my death, a sum equal to 10% of the appraised value of my estate as accepted by the Internal Revenue Service on my estate tax return.
“ITEM V
“All the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, real, personal or mixed, of which I shall die seized and possessed, or to which I may be entitled at the time of my death, I give, devise and bequeath to my two nephews, namely: JAMES F. WILLIAMS and JERRY R. WILLIAMS, to have and to hold, absolutely and forever, share and share alike.
“ITEM VI
“I nominate, constitute and appoint my nephew, JERRY R. WILLIAMS, to be the Executor of my estate and of this my Last Will and Testament, and I hereby exempt him from making any official bond for the faithful performance of his duties as such Executor; and I further exempt him from filing any inventory of my estate and from making any report to any court of the land. I further authorize and empower my said Executor to sell at public or private sale any or all of the property of which I shall die seized and possessed, at such time and price and upon such terms and conditions (including credit) as he may determine and to distribute the proceeds as in this Will set out; and I direct that in the exercise of such powers he shall be free from the supervision and control of the Probate Court and any other court.”

Mary Knight Williams predeceased Dollie Mae Finch and, therefore, did not take under the will.

The will was admitted to probate on June 14, 1983, and letters testamentary were issued to Jerry Williams as the executor.

The Finch estate consisted of household furnishings, farm equipment, various other personalty, and certain lands located in Lee and Chambers Counties. A mortgage covering a parcel of the Lee County property was foreclosed upon. Pursuant to the probate court’s authorization, the executor sold the other Lee County property to satisfy some of the estate debts. Thus, the only real property remaining in the estate is approximately 840 acres of land in Chambers County; that land is the subject of this action.

A stipulation regarding the amount of money bequeathed by item III in the will was entered into between the executor and Charlene Knight Faucett,. which provided, in pertinent part:

“Williams and Faucett hereby stipulate that said ITEM III entitles Faucett to a devise and bequest (hereinafter, the “Bequest”) equal to ten percent (10%) of the appraised value of the total gross estate of Dollie Mae Finch as indicated on line 1 of page one of the Federal Estate Tax Return for the Estate of Dollie Mae Finch, as accepted by the Internal Revenue Service. In addition, the Bequest shall not be reduced due to indebtedness, administrative expenses, attorneys’ fees or other costs of the Estate of Dollie Mae Finch.”

Under this stipulation Charlene Knight Faucett’s bequest totalled $55,438.30.

The established debts of the estate to-talled $45,300. The Bank held a mortgage in the amount of $94,685.51. However, the Bank’s mortgage covered only Jerry Williams’s residuary interest in the estate.

[575]*575Neither the bequests nor the remaining estate debts were satisfied during the 4-5 years following the issuance of the letters testamentary. Attempted sales of parcels of the approximately 840 acres were unsuccessful, and the legatees could not agree on a partition in kind.

On June 24, 1987, Charlene Knight Fau-cett filed a petition to sell the 840 acres for division to satisfy her claim against the estate, contending that an equitable partition in kind was impossible. The petition was amended, joining the other legatees, Frankie Faye Faucett Schoel and Charles Faucett, and requesting that interest accrue on their bequests until they were paid.

On the date the hearing on the petition was held, the executor, acting pro se, filed an answer demanding a jury trial, and averring that the stipulation regarding the value of the bequest in item III of the will did not provide for the accrual of interest and that a sale on the courthouse steps would not result in the estate’s receiving a fair price for the property. He also filed a motion for change of venue and a motion for the trial judge to recuse. The motion to recuse was premised upon the fact that all judges of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, which included Chambers County, had been recused in an underlying case in which Jerry Williams and Charlene Knight Fau-cett sued a Chambers County attorney who was allegedly involved in securing the $94,-685.51 loan from the Bank, as to which the 840 acres was mortgaged as security.1

The trial court refused to grant the jury demand, and denied the motions. After the hearing, the court found that the personalty had a market value of approximately $15,000 and that the 840 acres had a market value of approximately $294,000. The trial court entered a judgment ordering the sale of the estate property and payment of the bequest and estate debts.

The real property was purchased at the judicial sale for $255,000.2 The trial court confirmed the sale, and ordered the proceeds disbursed to pay the claims against the estate and the expenses of the sale. The remainder of the sale proceeds were paid into the court for disbursement to Jerry and James Williams, the residuary beneficiaries.

James and Jerry Williams appeal, contending that the trial court erred in ordering the estate property sold and in ordering that interest accrue on the bequests. We disagree. The trial court’s judgment, in pertinent part, reads:

“This is an action (i) to compel the Executor herein, Jerry R. Williams, to pay the Plaintiffs [Charlene Knight Faucett, Frankie Faye Faucett Schoel, and Charles Fau-cett] their legacies under the Will of Dollie Mae Finch (the ‘Will’) together with interest thereon pursuant to Code of Alabama 1975,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
579 So. 2d 572, 1989 Ala. LEXIS 700, 1989 WL 138361, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williams-v-faucett-ala-1989.