IN RE MICHAEL HESSLER LIVING TRUST. HEIDI SHADDICK ET AL., APPELLANTS, v. ROBERT HESSLER, SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE OF THE MICHAEL HESSLER LIVING TRUST, AND LORI J. MILLER, APPELLEES.
No. S-22-247
Nebraska Supreme Court
February 24, 2023
313 Neb. 607
Nebraska Supreme Court Online Library www.nebraska.gov/apps-courts-epub/ 02/24/2023 09:06 AM CST
NEBRASKA SUPREME COURT ADVANCE SHEETS
313 NEBRASKA REPORTS
IN RE HESSLER LIVING TRUST
Cite as 313 Neb. 607
IN RE MICHAEL HESSLER LIVING TRUST.
HEIDI SHADDICK ET AL., APPELLANTS, v. ROBERT HESSLER, SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE OF THE MICHAEL HESSLER LIVING TRUST, AND LORI J. MILLER, APPELLEES.
___ N.W.2d ___
Filed February 24, 2023. No. S-22-247.
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Judgments: Jurisdiction. A jurisdictional issue that does not involve a factual dispute presents a question of law. - Jurisdiction: Appeal and Error. Before reaching the legal issues presented for review, it is the duty of an appellate court to determine whether it has jurisdiction over the matter before it, and this is so even where neither party has raised the issue.
- Jurisdiction: Final Orders: Appeal and Error. For an appellate court to acquire jurisdiction of an appeal, the party must be appealing from a final order or a judgment.
- Final Orders: Appeal and Error. The four types of final orders which may be reviewed on appeal are (1) an order which affects a substantial right and which determines the action and prevents a judgment, (2) an order affecting a substantial right made during a special proceeding, (3) an order affecting a substantial right made on summary application in an action after judgment is rendered, and (4) an order denying a motion for summary judgment when such motion is based on the assertion of sovereign immunity or the immunity of a government official.
- Actions: Statutes. A special proceeding entails civil statutory remedies not encompassed in chapter 25 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes.
- Decedents’ Estates. A proceeding under the Nebraska Probate Code is a special proceeding.
- Final Orders: Words and Phrases. A substantial right is an essential legal right, not a mere technical right.
- Final Orders: Appeal and Error. A substantial right is affected if an order affects the subject matter of the litigation, such as by diminishing a claim or defense that was available to an appellant before the order from which an appeal is taken.
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Final Orders. Substantial rights under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-1902 (Cum. Supp. 2022) include those legal rights that a party is entitled to enforce or defend. - Final Orders: Appeal and Error. Having a substantial effect on a substantial right depends most fundamentally on whether the right could otherwise effectively be vindicated through an appeal from the final judgment.
- Summary Judgment: Final Orders. Partial summary judgments are usually considered interlocutory; they must ordinarily dispose of the whole merits of the case to be considered final.
- Summary Judgment: Final Orders: Appeal and Error. If an order granting partial summary judgment affects a substantial right and is made during a special proceeding, it is final for the purpose of appeal.
- Decedents’ Estates: Final Orders. A consideration regarding the finality of orders in probate cases is whether the order ended a discrete—that is, separate and distinct—phase of the proceedings.
Appeal from the District Court for Scotts Bluff County: KRIS D. MICKEY, Judge. Appeal dismissed.
Cathy S. Trent-Vilim and John M. Walker, of Lamson, Dugan & Murray, L.L.P., for appellants.
Thomas T. Holyoke and Andrew W. Snyder, of Holyoke, Snyder, Longoria, Reichert & Rice, P.C., L.L.O., and Jeffery T. Peetz and Brian S. Koerwitz, of Peetz, Koerwitz & Lafleur, P.C., L.L.O., for appellees.
MILLER-LERMAN, CASSEL, STACY, FUNKE, PAPIK, and FREUDENBERG, JJ., and PANKONIN, District Judge.
FUNKE, J.
INTRODUCTION
After Michael A. Hessler (the Decedent) died, his trust devised his house to his girlfriend, Lori J. Miller, and bequeathed the trust‘s residuary to his three children in equal shares. The house comprised the majority of the trust‘s value. Robert Hessler, the successor trustee (the Trustee), deeded the house to Miller, allocating all inheritance tax resulting from the transfer to the trust‘s residuary. Hessler‘s children brought an action in the county court for Lancaster County, Nebraska, against the Trustee and Miller. Among other relief, Hessler‘s children sought a determination that one or more trust amendments resulted from Miller‘s undue influence or, alternatively, that all inheritance tax obligations created by the real estate transfer must be apportioned to and collected from Miller.
The county court for Lancaster County transferred venue to the county court for Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska. The county court for Scotts Bluff County then granted Miller partial summary judgment, ordering that all inheritance taxes, as well as legal and administrative expenses, be paid out of the Trust‘s residuary. Hessler‘s children subsequently voluntarily dismissed their undue influence claim. Over 4 months after the county court‘s order granting Miller partial summary judgment, Hessler‘s children appealed. For the reasons we explain below, we dismiss the appeal.
BACKGROUND
The Decedent was the father of Heidi Shaddick, Amber Rocha, and Brock Hessler (collectively the children). In 2006, the Decedent executed “The Michael Hessler Living Trust” (hereinafter the Trust). The Trust directed that the remaining trust assets be divided into equal shares, one for
The Decedent died on November 23, 2020. On February 15, 2021, the Trustee registered the Trust in Scotts Bluff County. The Trust property has been valued at $964,610.47, of which $592,000 constitutes the value of the residence. There is no dispute that the Decedent and Miller never married and that, as a result, Miller‘s distribution will be taxed at a higher rate than the distributions to the children.
On February 18, 2021, the Trustee conveyed the residence to Miller by a deed of distribution. Based on his reading of the Trust language, the Trustee transferred the residence to Miller free and clear of any inheritance tax obligation and allocated all inheritance tax arising out of the real estate transfer to the Trust‘s residuary. Section 7 of the Trust provides, in pertinent part:
a. PAYMENT OF TAXES. The Successor Trustee shall pay from this trust all inheritance and estate taxes due by reason of the Settlor‘s death irrespective of whether such taxes are in respect of the trust property.
b. PAYMENT OF EXPENSES AND DEBTS. The Successor Trustee shall pay the funeral and related expenses of the Settlor together with the expenses of last illness not covered by [M]edicare or insurance. Additionally, the Successor Trustee may pay such of the debts and obligations of the Settlor as the Successor Trustee determines appropriate under the circumstances. In further addition, the Successor Trustee may pay the expenses of administering Settlor‘s estate, it being the express intention of the Settlor that the Successor Trustee take such actions as are appropriate to bring about an efficient and orderly administration of Settlor‘s estate.
On May 25, 2021, the children brought an action against the Trustee and Miller in the county court for Lancaster County. The children sought: (1) voidance of the Trustee‘s conveyance of the residence to Miller or, alternatively, a constructive trust permitting the residence to be liquidated; (2) a declaratory judgment declaring the parties’ rights and duties with respect to the inheritance tax consequences of Miller‘s rights to the residence; (3) removal of the Trustee; (4) an accounting of the Trust; (5) a finding that the Decedent was unduly influenced by Miller to amend the Trust; and (6) monetary damages against Miller for property obtained as a result of undue influence. The Trustee moved the county court for an order transferring venue to Scotts Bluff County where the Trust was registered. On August 27, the county court issued an order granting the Trustee‘s motion to transfer venue.
The children and Miller moved for partial summary judgment on October 6 and 20, 2021, respectively, as to how the inheritance tax should be allocated. In their motion, the children asserted that the Trust was silent on the apportionment of applicable inheritance taxes and that, pursuant to
On October 21, 2021, the Trustee filed an inventory, an inheritance tax worksheet, and an application to pay tentative inheritance tax. The inheritance tax worksheet attributed inheritance tax to the share of each beneficiary as follows: $710.50 as to the share of each of the children and $94,627.04 as to the share of Miller. The following day, the court issued an order approving the Trustee‘s application and allowing payment of the tentative inheritance tax. On October 25, the children filed an objection to the court‘s order allowing payment of tentative inheritance tax, motion to reconsider, and request for bond. They emphasized that their motion for partial summary judgment could have significant implications on which beneficiaries of the Trust are responsible for satisfying the applicable inheritance taxes. Accordingly, the children objected to the Trustee‘s “payment of the entirety of the [inheritance taxes] out of the residuary of the estate.”
On November 4, 2021, the county court heard oral arguments on the cross-motions for partial summary judgment. The Trustee and Miller argued that the children “rely heavily” on
On November 19, 2021, the county court granted Miller‘s motion for partial summary judgment on the inheritance tax issue and overruled the children‘s motion. The court additionally overruled the children‘s objection to the court‘s order allowing tentative payment of inheritance tax, motion to reconsider, and request for bond. The court found the “clear language” of the Trust “sufficiently precise” to support its holding, comparing the case to In re Estate of Shell.1 The court observed that the drafter‘s affidavit was corroborative and clarified the Decedent‘s intention. The court also concluded that the children‘s “reliance on the language of . . .
On November 24, 2021, Miller filed a motion for sanctions against the children pursuant to
On March 22, 2022, the county court issued an order denying Miller‘s motion for sanctions and the children‘s motion to determine appropriate reserves. On April 6, 2022, the children purported to appeal the November 19, 2021, order granting Miller partial summary judgment (Apportionment
ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR
The children assign, restated, that the county court erred in (1) receiving extrinsic evidence at the hearing on the parties’ cross-motions for partial summary judgment to determine the Decedent‘s intent; (2) ordering that all inheritance taxes, as well as legal and administrative expenses, be paid out of the Trust‘s residuary instead of proportionally among the Trust‘s beneficiaries; and (3) transferring the case to Scotts Bluff County.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
[1] A jurisdictional issue that does not involve a factual dispute presents a question of law.3
ANALYSIS
[2,3] Before reaching the legal issues presented for review, it is the duty of an appellate court to determine whether it has jurisdiction over the matter before it.4 For an appellate court to acquire jurisdiction of an appeal, the party must be appealing from a final order or a judgment.5 The Legislature has defined the term “judgment” as ““the final determination of the rights of the parties in an action.‘”6 Conversely, every direction of a court or judge, made or entered in writing and not included in a judgment, is an order.7
[4] The four types of final orders which may be reviewed on appeal are (1) an order which affects a substantial right and which determines the action and prevents a judgment, (2) an order affecting a substantial right made during a special proceeding, (3) an order affecting a substantial right made on summary application in an action after judgment is rendered, and (4) an order denying a motion for summary judgment when such motion is based on the assertion of sovereign immunity or the immunity of a government official.8 As applied to this case,
[5,6] A special proceeding entails civil statutory remedies not encompassed in chapter 25 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes.10 The proceedings in this case
[7-10] A substantial right is an essential legal right, not a mere technical right.12 A substantial right is affected if an order affects the subject matter of the litigation, such as by diminishing a claim or defense that was available to an appellant before the order from which an appeal is taken.13 It is not enough that the right itself be substantial; the effect of the order on that right must also be substantial.14 Substantial rights under
[11,12] Partial summary judgments are usually considered interlocutory; they must ordinarily dispose of the whole merits of the case to be considered final.18 However, if an order granting partial summary judgment affects a substantial right and is made during a special proceeding, it is final for the purpose of appeal.19
[13] We have addressed whether various types of probate orders, in various contexts, were final and appealable. In such cases, we have often held that a consideration regarding the finality of orders in probate cases is whether the order ended a discrete—that is, separate and distinct—phase of the proceedings.20 An order ending a discrete phase of probate proceedings is final, but one that is merely preliminary to such an order is not.21 In In re Estate of Larson,22 we approvingly cited one commentator‘s observation that in the context of multifaceted special proceedings that are designed to administer the affairs of a person, an order that ends a discrete phase of the proceedings affects a substantial right because it finally resolves the issues raised in that phase.
In re Estate of Larson involved a personal representative‘s petition in county court for complete settlement of a decedent‘s estate.23 The decedent‘s son objected to the personal representative‘s proposed schedule of distribution, alleging
“the inheritance taxes should be paid from the estate and to the extent the residuary estate is unavailable for payment of these expenses, the specific devisees in proportion to the share owned by [two beneficiaries] should be reduced for [valid administrative expenses] and inheritance tax.”26
The son appealed the county court‘s dismissal of his objection.27 Upon review, we noted the son‘s concession that the order dismissing his objection “gave guidance on issues of law but did not address what each party would receive in ‘dollars and cents.‘”28 We explained that the county court‘s order decided some of the issues relevant to the phase of the proceedings before the court, but that that phase would not be completed until the court entered an order disposing of the original petition.29 Accordingly, we concluded, the order did not affect a substantial right.30 Because we lacked jurisdiction to address the son‘s assigned errors, we dismissed his appeal.31
In a comparable way, the children argue that several components of their claims remained unresolved when the county court entered the Apportionment Order in November 2021. Therefore, they argue, the Apportionment Order cannot be said to have concluded a discrete phase of the proceedings. On this point, we agree. But the children purport to appeal from the county court‘s March 22, 2022, order addressing Miller‘s motion for sanctions and the children‘s concomitant motion to determine appropriate reserves. The children essentially argue that their appeal from the court‘s March 22 order is proper because proceedings were “resolved” after it was issued. In support of their appeal from the March 22 order, the children reference our prior case In re Guardianship & Conservatorship of Woltemath.32
In In re Guardianship & Conservatorship of Woltemath, we held that when a motion for attorney fees under
For various reasons, the rule from In re Guardianship & Conservatorship of Woltemath is inapplicable here. First, as Miller emphasizes, her motion for sanctions was filed after the county court issued the Apportionment Order. Miller correctly argues that a motion for fees under
Notwithstanding the fact that the children‘s voluntarily dismissed claims were outstanding when the Apportionment Order was issued and could presumably have affected inheritance tax liability, the Apportionment Order cannot be said to have disposed of a discrete phase of probate proceedings. There is an additional element at play which necessarily precludes such a finding. On October 21, 2021, the Trustee filed an application to pay tentative inheritance tax. On October 22, the county court issued an order allowing payment of tentative inheritance tax pursuant to
The county court has jurisdiction to fix the values of the property at issue, assess inheritance tax on the shares of the beneficiaries of the decedent‘s estate, and determine therefrom the inheritance tax that is owing.36 Proceedings for that purpose can be initiated pursuant to
In light of the applicable statutory scheme, we are inclined to conclude that the children are attempting to obtain our review of a discrete phase of probate proceedings regarding inheritance tax liability that has not yet been completed in the county court.
CONCLUSION
The Apportionment Order was not a final order. An appeal from the March 22, 2022, order addressing Miller‘s motion for sanctions is not a proper vessel to obtain our review of the errors assigned. Thus, we lack jurisdiction to decide the merits of this matter, and the children‘s appeal is dismissed.
HEAVICAN, C.J., not participating.
APPEAL DISMISSED.
