Opinion ID: 2602113
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Joshua's Claims Against Rebecca for Fraud, Malfeasance, or Accounting

Text: {31} Joshua also appeals the district court's grant of summary judgment on his claims of malfeasance, fraud, and request for accounting. These claims challenge Rebecca's conduct as Personal Representative in connection with the division of Alfred's assets other than the Fund, specifically, certain insurance proceeds and real estate that was Alfred's separate property. The Court of Appeals affirmed the summary judgment, finding that Joshua's allegations were time-barred, and that there was no basis for any claims against Rebecca for fraud, malfeasance, or an accounting, either individually or as personal representative of the estate. Marchand, 2007-NMCA-138, ¶¶ 29-32, 142 N.M. 795, 171 P.3d 309. We agree with the Court of Appeals and affirm the district court's summary judgment with respect to Joshua's claims of fraud, malfeasance, or accounting. {32} Rule 12-201(A)(2) NMRA required that Joshua file an appeal within thirty days of the Probate Court's December 5, 2003 Order (A notice of appeal shall be filed ... within thirty (30) days after the judgment or order appealed from is filed in the district court clerk's office). Joshua neither appealed the Order, nor pursued a claim of breach of fiduciary duty within the prescribed statutory period. Joshua argues that Rebecca's reappointment as Personal Representative for the purposes of administering the Fund award should restart the statute of limitations. We find no merit in this argument. Joshua's claims pertain to issues decided in the original probate proceedings that were resolved in the Order of Complete Settlement and Discharge of Representative. The limitations period for challenging that Order expired prior to the reinstatement of Rebecca as Personal Representative for purposes of distributing the Fund award. We will not start an entirely new limitations period, triggered by the reopening of the probate to address the Fund award, for Joshua to raise claims entirely unrelated to the Fund award  claims that he failed to raise during the limitations period triggered by closure of the original probate proceedings. {33} We also agree with the Court of Appeals that the record does not support Joshua's contentions that Rebecca improperly or fraudulently took money received from the Fund so as to lift the six-month statute of limitations for pursuing a breach of fiduciary duty claim against a personal representative under NMSA 1978, § 45-3-1005 (1975). We affirm the district court's denial of Joshua's claims for fraud, malfeasance or accounting, and we refer the parties to the opinion of the Court of Appeals for a more thorough discussion of the record as it relates to this issue. See Marchand, 2007-NMCA-138, ¶¶ 31-32, 142 N.M. 795, 171 P.3d 309.