Opinion ID: 1814261
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 21

Heading: Thirty-Percent Setoff

Text: The trial court deducted 30 percent from the award to the estate for 1993 and 1994 on the basis that the appellees were 30-percent heirs to the property. This setoff was in error. The county court has exclusive original jurisdiction of all proceedings regarding a decedent's estate. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 24-517(1) (Reissue 1995). To the extent permitted by the Nebraska Constitution, the county court has jurisdiction over all subject matter relating to estates of decedents, including the determination of heirs. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 30-2211 (Reissue 1995). Title to real property passes immediately on death to devisees or heirs, subject to administration. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 30-2401 (Reissue 1995). The passage of title to the heirs does not require settlement of the estate or a probate order declaring heirship to vest title. Brtek v. Cihal, 245 Neb. 756, 515 N.W.2d 628 (1994). The personal representative has the right to take possession and control of the decedent's real property. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 30-2470 (Reissue 1995). However, real or personal property may be left with or surrendered to the person presumptively entitled to it unless or until, in the judgment of the personal representative, possession of the property will be necessary for purposes of estate administration. Id. The request by a personal representative for delivery of any property possessed by an heir is conclusive evidence, in any action against the heir for possession of the property, that the property is necessary for estate administration. Id.; In re Estate of Kesting, 220 Neb. 524, 371 N.W.2d 107 (1985); Neylon v. Parker, 177 Neb. 187, 128 N.W.2d 690 (1964). In Neylon, this court held that where there was litigation involving the rights of a husband to inherit, it was necessary for an estate administrator to collect rents to protect the estate until a determination of heirship was made. The estate in this case made a demand for surrender of all estate property wrongly transferred to the appellees. Under the Nebraska statutes, such a demand is considered conclusive proof that the property is necessary for estate administration. Furthermore, under the trial court's original order, affirmed by this court, the appellees hold all property transferred in constructive trust for the benefit of the estate. It would be illogical to conclude that the appellees hold all but 30 percent of that property in constructive trust. The appellees contend that because the estate has not specifically requested possession of their 30-percent share, the property is not necessary for estate administration. However, the subject of the lengthy litigation in this case has been the ownership of the property and the estate's entitlement to rents and profits from that property, and the appellees were previously ordered to transfer that property to the estate. Regardless of how the estate framed its request for possession of the appellees' 30-percent share, possession of the property is both necessary for purposes of estate administration and required by the county court. Accordingly, the 30-percent setoff applied by the trial court was in error. In summary, the estate is entitled to recover the fair rental value for the property as decided by the trial court for all property except where the actual rents were shown to be greater than the fair rental value. The figures presented by the parties contain some mathematical errors. When corrected for these errors, adjusted to include the actual rents received on the pastureland, and not including a deduction for the 30-percent share, the estate is entitled for 1993 to $21,621.60, less a tax expense of $5,853, for a total of $15,768.60. For 1994, the estate is entitled to $23,487.53, less Stanley's share of the partnership real estate amounting to $1,087, for a total of $22,400.53. If it is determined that the appellees paid taxes on Stanley's property for 1994, the amount of the taxes paid should be subtracted from this total.