In re Estate of Schurman
30 Neb. Ct. App. 259
| Neb. Ct. App. | 2021Background
- Victor Schurman died in 2012; his will left most residual personal property to son Michael and specific real property and other bequests to others; Christine (second wife) received certain real property and later died, leaving a revocable trust.
- Michael had leased six farm parcels (the "Six Parcels") and received rental proceeds in 2012–2015; the successor personal representative never demanded those rents be turned over and in 2015 deeded an undivided one-half interest in the Six Parcels to Michael under the will’s residuary clause.
- Christine’s children (Patricia and Jeffrey Harris) intervened in 2019 as successor cotrustees of Christine’s trust, seeking (1) reimbursement for attorney fees Christine/Trust paid defending Michael’s claims, (2) reimbursement from Michael for estate expenses paid with funds they say benefited the estate, and (3) an accounting and repayment of rental/government payments Michael received (~$160,000).
- The county court ordered Michael to return $160,000 to the estate, denied recovery of district-court fees, and declined to award probate fees; it left some claims for potential refiling after final accounting.
- Michael appealed, assigning error chiefly that the intervenors lacked standing to pursue reimbursement of estate assets and to obtain the $160,000 recovery.
Issues
| Issue | Intervenors' Argument | Michael's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the probate court had subject-matter jurisdiction to award attorney fees incurred in district-court actions to Christine/Trust | District-court fees were caused by Michael’s litigation and relief should be awarded to compensate Christine/Trust | Probate court lacked jurisdiction over fees incurred in separate district-court proceedings and cannot order reimbursement | Court: probate court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction over district-court fees; that portion of the order is void and vacated |
| Whether intervenors had standing to recover attorney fees incurred in the probate proceedings | As interested trust cotrustees/beneficiaries, they can seek assessment of fees paid to defend probate litigation caused by Michael | Only a personal representative can recover estate assets; but assessing costs directly against Michael (not the estate) is permissible | Court: intervenors had standing to seek direct reimbursement from Michael for probate-court fees; county court denied those fees and that denial is affirmed (intervenors did not cross-appeal) |
| Whether intervenors had standing to require Michael to return estate assets/rents (the $160,000) | Intervenors argued Christine/Trust bore estate burdens while Michael retained rents and thus Michael should remit the funds to the estate | Only a personal representative may sue to recover estate assets; intervenors lack standing to pursue estate recovery against a distributee | Court: heirs/devisees lack standing to prosecute direct actions to recover estate assets; only a personal representative can (except narrow cases when PR refuses to act). Because intervenors lacked standing, the $160,000 order is vacated |
| Whether intervenors had standing to request an accounting and to object to administrator’s/accounting items (e.g., fees for successor PR) | As successor cotrustees and beneficiaries of Christine’s Trust, they have an interest in Trustee/estate finances and may seek an accounting | Michael argued intervenors lack authority to administer or recover estate assets | Court: intervenors have standing to request an accounting and to object to estate accountings; county court may permit refiling/objections at final accounting |
Key Cases Cited
- In re Estate of Hedke, 278 Neb. 727, 775 N.W.2d 13 (Neb. 2009) (heir lacks standing to sue for estate assets when a personal representative exists; exception when PR refuses to act)
- Malousek v. Meyer, 309 Neb. 803, 962 N.W.2d 676 (Neb. 2021) (right and duty to recover assets for an estate reside with the personal representative)
- Hahn v. Verret, 143 Neb. 820, 11 N.W.2d 551 (Neb. 1943) (executor’s authority to acquire or reacquire estate assets to pay debts and expenses)
- In re Estate of Jurgensmeier, 142 Neb. 188, 5 N.W.2d 233 (Neb. 1942) (discusses objections by devisees to personal representative’s accounting and conduct)
- In re Estate of Emery, 258 Neb. 789, 606 N.W.2d 750 (Neb. 2000) (probate proceedings are in rem; all persons interested may appear to protect their interests)
- In re Estate of Graham, 301 Neb. 594, 919 N.W.2d 714 (Neb. 2018) (any person beneficially interested may file objections to administration accounts)
- Mischke v. Mischke, 253 Neb. 439, 571 N.W.2d 248 (Neb. 1997) (illustrates personal representative’s role in recovering estate property)