The Importance of Taking a Consistent Position in Probate Litigation

There is a principle in civil litigation known as judicial estoppel. The basic idea is fairly simple to explain. Basically, if you take a position during a lawsuit, you cannot take a conflicting or contradictory position later in the same case. Even if your new position has merit, the court can hold the party to its original position by invoking judicial estoppel in order to prevent that party from “making a mockery of justice.”

Earlier this year, judicial estoppel played an important role in a Florida probate dispute. This case, Dora v. Morrison AS, involved a married couple who died in 2011. Prior to their death, the couple transferred their home in Melbourne, Florida, to a family trust. After they died, the successor co-trustees of the trust filed a motion in court to sell the property.

Several years later, the wife’s adult children filed petitions to determine the homestead status of the Melbourne property. Essentially, the children sought a declaration that the house was not a protected homestead. One of the co-trustees, who was also the personal representative of the wife’s estate, supported the petitions. The other co-trustee did not and filed a motion to strike the petitions. The trial court granted the motions to strike.

The children and their supporting co-trustee appealed. The Florida Fifth District Court of Appeals ended up reversing the trial court’s decision and returning the case for further proceedings. While the appellate court did not address the merits of the case, it did explain why judicial estoppel played a role in its decision.

Here is what happened. In their appeal, the children claimed that the trial court improperly followed the civil rules of procedure used in adversary proceedings. Their petition, however, was a non-adversary probate proceeding. And in a non-adversary proceeding, a motion to strike is improper.

The problem with that argument, the Fifth District explained, was that up until the appeal, both parties “carried on as if the proceedings were adversary.” In other words, before the trial court, the petitioners said this was an adversary proceeding. Now they were telling the Court of Appeals that it was a non-adversary proceeding. Such inconsistent positions presented a textbook case for applying judicial estoppel.

That said, the petitioners still won their appeal, because the Fifth District went on to hold that the trial court failed to follow the proper rules of civil procedure applicable to a motion to strike in an adversary proceeding.

Contact a Pompano Beach Estate and Trust Litigation Attorney

Probate litigation usually involves understanding and applying a number of complex rules. That is why it is essential to work with a qualified Pompano Beach estate and trust litigation lawyer who specializes in this field of Florida law. If you are involved in a legal dispute involving a Florida probate estate or trust and need legal advice, contact the offices of Mark R. Manceri, P.A., today to schedule a consultation.

Source:

scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17649518420811274856