J-S25044-18

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

IN RE: THE ESTATE OF IRENE G. 

USCHOCK

APPEAL OF: WILLIAM USCHOCK

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 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

 PENNSYLVANIA

 No. 23 WDA 2018

Appeal from the Order December 18, 2017

In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County 

Orphans' Court at No(s): 65-08-0671

BEFORE: GANTMAN, P.J., PANELLA, J., and OTT, J.

MEMORANDUM BY OTT, J.: FILED JULY 24, 2018

William Uschock appeals, pro se, from the order entered December 18, 

2017, in the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County, which granted

his brothers’, Richard Uschock and David Uschock, petition to remove William 

Uschock as co-executor of the estate of their deceased mother, Irene G. 

Uschock (“Estate”) pursuant to 20 Pa.C.S. § 3128.

1

 William Uschock 

complains the trial court erred in removing him as executor of the Estate. 

Based upon the following, we affirm. 

The facts underlying the Orphans’ Court’s order are as follows. On 

March 16, 2008, Irene G. Uschock passed away. See Death Certificate, 

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1 The Orphans’ Court order is appealable under the collateral order doctrine. 

See Pa.R.A.P. 313; In re Estate of Mumma, 41 A.3d 41, n.1 (Pa. Super. 

2012).
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3/19/2008, at 1. Her Will was probated and the Estate was opened on May 

1, 2008. See Certification of Notice of Estate Administration, 5/19/2008. An 

inheritance tax return was filed and accepted by the Pennsylvania Department 

of Revenue on April 27, 2009. See Notice of Inheritance Tax Appraisement, 

4/27/2009. The Estate is insolvent. See id.

Irene Uschock’s Will named her five children, Richard Uschock, David 

Uschock, William Uschock, Diane Santmyer, and Patricia Glott as co-executors 

and equal residuary beneficiaries of the Estate. See Last Will and Testament, 

7/22/1991, at SECOND - THIRD. Patricia Glott, Diane Santmyer, and Richard 

Uschock renounced their rights as executors, leaving David Uschock and 

William Uschock as the remaining co-executors.2 See N.T., 12/14/17, at 5. 

The principal assets of the Estate include several parcels of land in Mt. 

Pleasant Township, including a farm, and a smaller plot of land containing a 

furniture store and two other buildings. See id., at 6-7. The Will provided, 

in pertinent part: “I direct that my co-executors get together to divide the 

farm in a manner they can agree to or by majority vote.”3 Last Will and 

Testament, 7/22/1991, at FOURTH. 

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2 Patricia Glott and Diane Santmyer are not a part of this appeal. 

3 Due to the reluctance of the executors to pay for an appraisal of the assets, 

the values as stated on the Inheritance Tax Return were calculated by 

multiplying the assessed values by the common level ratio. See N.T., 

12/14/17, at 18.
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Since the Estate was opened in 2008, no action has been taken to finalize and 

close the Estate for approximately nine years, largely due to the reluctance of 

William Uschock to cooperate in settling the Estate and paying its debts. See 

id., at 62-63. His co-beneficiaries and co-executor approached him “dozens” 

of times regarding the sale or lease of the large farm property, and he rejected 

their proposals.4 Id. Meanwhile, he continued to occupy the property for his 

own personal use.5 See id., at 40. To the present day, he cultivates the 

farm, and uses the family furniture store to store his farming equipment and 

to sell his personal fruits and vegetables. See id.

On multiple occasions, other beneficiaries attempted to discuss 

solutions with William Uschock and were rejected. When approached about 

listing the farm property, he continually insisted on delaying any potential 

sale.6 See id., at 39. Richard Uschock testified that he attempted to hand 

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4 There have been occasional rentals for the two residences on the smaller 

parcel. See N.T., 12/14/2017, at 26.

5 Richard Uschock testified he was not aware of any payments made by 

William Uschock to the Estate in exchange for the use of the land. See N.T., 

12/14/2017, at 30. William Uschock disputed this and claimed that he used 

the funds from his use of the land to pay down the debts of the Estate, but 

the trial court found Richard Uschock’s testimony to be more credible. See 

id., at 76. William Uschock also claimed his use of the property was pursuant 

to an agreement with his father, who predeceased his mother. See id., at 

42-43. Even if such an agreement existed, the provisions of the Will control 

the disposition of the farm.

6 William Uschock claimed he wished to maximize the value of the Estate by 

waiting to sell until the “turnpike interchange... comes through,” which he 
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his brother information about the valuation of the property, which William 

Uschock refused to take. See id., at 54-55. Similarly, when the other

brothers identified a potential lessee for the farm property in the spring of 

2017, William Uschock refused, told them he would be farming the land, and 

refused to sign the lease. Id., at 28. He remained adamant even after the 

family voted to go forward with the lease. See id., at 66-67.

Since 2008, the assets of the Estate were placed at risk on numerous 

occasions due to its insolvency. Other family members were forced to pay 

real estate taxes out-of-pocket in order to protect the real estate from a tax 

sale. See N.T., 12/14/2017, at 8. Richard Uschock testified he received 

notice several times that mortgage payments were delinquent. See id., at 

31. Additionally, William Uschock’s placement of his farm equipment on the 

furniture store parcel caused the family’s insurance provider to threaten to 

rescind its coverage. See Loss Control Recommendations Letter, 6/21/2017, 

at 1. The equipment was subsequently removed at the expense of the Estate. 

See N.T., 12/14/2017, at 56.

On July 21, 2017, Richard and David Uschock petitioned for William 

Uschock’s removal as co-executor of the Estate. The case proceeded to a 

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contended would “maybe triple” the value of the property. N.T., 12/14/2017, 

at 79-80. He relied on nothing but his own non-expert evaluation of the 

property’s future value to support this contention. See id., at 80-83.
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hearing on December 14, 2017. On December 18, 2017, the Orphans’ Court 

issued an order removing him as co-executor. This pro se appeal followed.7

Before we address the merits of this appeal, we note the pro se brief 

William Uschock submitted to this Court has substantial defects. See

Pa.R.A.P. 2111. It does not contain a statement of jurisdiction or a statement 

of questions presented. See William Uschock’s Brief at 1-2. More importantly, 

it fails to cite to authority entirely, and does not contain any meaningful 

discussion of the issue raised. See id. It consists of two handwritten pages, 

and baldly states that the Orphans’ Court acted “without an iota of evidence 

to show cause,” without indicating where the evidence is lacking in the 

reasoning.8 Id. at 2. 

We are guided by the following: “When issues are not properly raised 

and developed in briefs, when the briefs are wholly inadequate to present 

specific issues for review[,] a Court will not consider the merits thereof.” 

Commonwealth v. Maris, 629 A.2d 1014, 1017 (Pa. Super. 1993). 

Moreover, 

[w]hile this court is willing to liberally construe materials filed by 

a pro se litigant, we note that appellant is not entitled to any 

particular advantage because []he lacks legal training. As our 

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7 The Orphans’ Court did not order William Uschock to file a concise statement 

of errors complained of on appeal under Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b), but did issue an 

opinion under Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a) on February 6, 2018. 

8 Likewise, William Uschock’s reply brief merely recites facts that contravene 

those adopted by the Orphans’ Court, and does not cite to authority or develop 

any analysis. See William Uschock’s Reply Brief at 1-3.
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supreme court has explained, “any layperson choosing to 

represent [himself] in a legal proceeding must, to some 

reasonable extent, assume the risk that [his] lack of expertise and 

legal training will prove [his] undoing.”

Commonwealth v. Rivera, 685 A.2d 1011, 1013 (Pa. Super. 1996) (citation 

omitted). Nevertheless, because we are able to discern the nature of the claim 

raised as a challenge to his removal as executor, we will address William 

Uschock’s appeal.

Our standard of review for the findings of an Orphans’ Court is as 

follows:

The findings of a judge of the orphans’ court division, sitting 

without a jury, must be accorded the same weight and effect as 

the verdict of a jury, and will not be reversed by an appellate court 

in the absence of an abuse of discretion or a lack of evidentiary 

support. This rule is particularly applicable to findings of fact which 

are predicated upon the credibility of the witnesses, whom the 

judge has had the opportunity to hear and observe, and upon the 

weight given to their testimony. In reviewing the Orphans’ Court’s 

findings, our task is to ensure that the record is free from legal 

error and to determine if the Orphans’ Court's findings are 

supported by competent and adequate evidence and are not 

predicated upon capricious disbelief of competent and credible 

evidence.

In re Estate of Warden, 2 A.3d 565, 571 (Pa.Super. 2010) (citations and 

quotations omitted). 

Section 3182 of the Probate, Estates, and Fiduciaries Code governs the 

removal of executors and provides, in relevant part:

The court shall have exclusive power to remove a personal 

representative when he:

(1) is wasting or mismanaging the estate, is or is likely to become 

insolvent, or has failed to perform any duty imposed by law; or
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. . .

(5) when, for any other reason, the interests of the estate are 

likely to be jeopardized by his continuance in office.

20 Pa.C.S. § 3182. With respect to Section 3182, the Pennsylvania Supreme 

Court has stated: 

While, under that statutory provision, orphans' courts do have the 

power of removal of personal representatives and such removal 

lies largely within the discretion of such courts, an abuse of such 

discretion renders its exercise subject to appellate review. . . . Our 

present inquiry is whether the court below abused its discretion . 

. . .

In our review we are mindful of well settled principles in this area. 

An executor, of course, is chosen by the testator himself, and his 

appointment represents an expression of trust and confidence by 

the testator. Hence, his removal is a drastic action which should 

be undertaken only when the estate within the control of such 

personal representative is endangered. To justify the removal of 

a testamentary personal representative the proof of the cause for 

such removal must be clear. 

In re Estate of Lux, 389 A.2d 1053, 1059 (Pa. 1978) (citations omitted). 

“The personal interest of a fiduciary being in conflict with that of the estate 

and the unfriendly feeling between the heirs constitute sufficient cause for 

removal.” Id. at 1060, quoting Rafferty Estate, 105 A.2d 147, 148 (Pa. 

1954). “Where a conflict of interest or self-dealing is apparent from the 

circumstances, there is no need to demonstrate that the fiduciary acted in bad 

faith or with fraudulent intent.” In re Estate of Dobson, 417 A.2d 138, n.6

(Pa. 1980).

Turning to the present matter, in removing William Uschock, the 

Orphans’ court found the following: 
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Based upon the relevant testimony, the Court was able to 

establish that the estate has been open for over nine years [ ], 

and in that time no movement has been made towards finalizing 

and closing the estate. All parties credibly testified that this lack 

of movement was based on a refusal by William Uschock to agree 

to any sale of the at-issue real property, based on his own nonexpert evaluation of the present and future value of said real 

property. It is evident that for the past nine years, William 

Uschock has been making use of said real property, while 

simultaneously refusing to move toward a resolution of the estate 

with his former co-executor Richard Uschock and his current coexecutor David Uschock. Co-executor David Uschock made 

known his intention to facilitate a liquidation and closing of the 

estate in order to facilitate a disbursement to all five (5) heirs to 

the estate as soon as possible. The December 18, 2017 Order 

was issued to expedite the closing of the simple estate at issue, 

based upon the testimony of the parties and witnesses listed 

above.

Orphans’ Court Opinion, 2/6/2018, at 1-2. We agree with the court’s 

conclusion.

The record demonstrates that William Uschock persistently refused to 

sign a lease, even after his co-executor and co-beneficiaries conducted a vote 

in favor of signing.

9

 Additionally, by insisting upon waiting to sell, William 

Uschock put the Estate assets at risk several times. Due to the insolvency of 

the Estate, the delay of the sale resulted in missed mortgage and real estate 

tax payments. This nearly led to a tax sale multiple times, which would have 

deprived all beneficiaries of their rightful share of the Estate, and forced other 

parties to contribute personal funds to save the property. The record is replete 

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9 See Last Will and Testament, 7/22/1991, at FOURTH (stating “I direct that 

my co-executors get together to divide the farm in a manner they can agree 

to or by majority vote”). 
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with evidence that William Uschock “[mismanaged] the estate.” See 20 

Pa.C.S. § 3182(1). Accordingly, his removal is appropriate under Section 

3182.

Furthermore, we are guided by Lux, supra, in which our Supreme Court 

affirmed an order removing an appellant as executor because she knowingly 

failed to report assets of the estate. See Lux, 389 A.2d at 1060-61. The Lux

Court found the ruling in Rafferty Estate, 105 A.2d 147, 148 (Pa. 1954), in 

which an order removing an administrator was affirmed, governed because 

the appellant demonstrated “clear conflicts of interest” and caused “manifest 

hostility” between herself and the other heirs. Id. at 1060. 

The Lux Court also noted that our Supreme Court had previously 

distinguished Rafferty in DiMarco Estate, 257 A.2d 849, 854 (Pa. 1969), by 

holding that a testator-chosen personal representative, rather than an 

administrator, could not be removed “in the absence of a showing of injury by 

reason thereof to the best interests of the estate.” Id., quoting DiMarco 

Estate, 257 A.2d 849, 854 (Pa. 1969). However, despite the Lux appellant’s 

status as a testator-chosen executor, the Supreme Court ordered her removal 

because her failure to report assets displayed a conflict of interest and her 

continuance in office would put the estate at risk of injury going forward. Id.

Similar to Lux, supra, William Uschock’s refusal to cooperate, coupled 

with his personal use of the land, constituted a conflict of interest. William 

Uschock caused animosity by frustrating his siblings’ efforts to sell the real 
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estate and distribute the residue, if any. Moreover, his use of the land for his 

personal farming operation is clearly at odds with the interest of the other 

residuary beneficiaries in selling the real estate and settling the Estate as soon 

as possible. Because of the nine years since the Estate has been opened and 

exposed to risk, paired with William Uschock’s refusal to cooperate and his 

personal interest in using the land, there is sufficient evidence to indicate the 

interests of the Estate are “likely to be jeopardized by his continuance in 

office.” 20 Pa.C.S. § 3182(5). 

We further note William Uschock was chosen by the testatrix as 

executor, as in Lux, supra, and his removal is therefore a “drastic action” 

taken only because the Estate would be otherwise endangered. Lux, supra, 

389 A.2d at 1059. However, it is less drastic since David Uschock, who was 

similarly chosen by the testatrix, remains as executor.10 See N.T., 

12/14/2017, at 90. Consequently, we conclude the Orphans’ Court did not 

abuse its discretion in removing William Uschock as executor.

William Uschock’s handwritten application for relief, filed May 14, 2018, 

is denied as it is duplicative of the issues raised on appeal.

Order affirmed. Application for relief denied.

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10 David Uschock’s counsel assured the Orphans’ Court he would work to close 

the Estate and to facilitate the disbursement of the assets as soon as possible. 

See N.T., 12/14/2017, at 90. 
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Judgment Entered.

Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.

Prothonotary

Date: 7/24/2018