Suggs v. Gray

Fred W. Suggs, Jr., as personal representative of the Estate of Frances W. Gray, deceased, appealed a circuit court order denying his Rule 60(b), Ala. R. Civ. P., motion for relief from judgments entered by the circuit court on the basis that the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction to enter those judgments. Frances ("the wife") died testate in September 2011, and the Probate Court issued letters testamentary to her husband, Floyd Gray ("husband"), establishing him as the personal representative of his wife's estate. The husband died testate in January 2012, and the probate court issued letters testamentary to Elizabeth Gray ("Gray"), establishing her as the personal representative of the husband's estate. The probate court then appointed Suggs as the successor personal representative of the wife's estate. Gray and Suggs thereafter sold the house in which the husband and the wife had lived. They had owned the house as tenants in common; there was no survivorship provision. Before the sale of the house, both Gray and Suggs agreed that the net proceeds from the sale would be held in a trust account the law firm representing both estates. At some point, Suggs sent the law firm a letter stating that the wife's estate had a "claim" against the husband's estate and instructing the law firm not to disburse any proceeds to the husband's estate until the "matter" was resolved. While the administration of both estates was pending in the probate court, Gray filed a declaratory-judgment action, asserting that a controversy existed between her and Suggs concerning the disbursement of the proceeds held in the law firm's trust account, specifically, asserting that Suggs was withholding consent to disburse that portion of the proceeds belonging to the husband's estate. Suggs moved to dismiss the declaratory-judgment action, arguing the circuit court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction. The circuit court denied the motion. Suggs then filed an answer and a counterclaim, alleging fraud, conversion, embezzlement, breach of the duty of loyalty, and breach of fiduciary duty. Under the facts of this case, the circuit court had subject-matter jurisdiction over the declaratory-judgment action concerning disbursement of the proceeds held in the law firm's trust account. The Alabama Supreme Court affirmed a portion of the summary judgment entered in the declaratory-judgment action, which ordered one-half of the proceeds be disbursed to the husband's estate. Because Suggs filed a counterclaim concerning ownership of certain assets that were clearly within the probate court's jurisdiction, the probate court retained jurisdiction over those estate assets and because the administration of neither estate was removed to the circuit court pursuant to statute, the circuit court's judgments purporting to exercise jurisdiction over those assets were a nullity. That portion of the summary judgment concerning the proceeds from certain assets was vacated. View "Suggs v. Gray" on Justia Law