Opinion ID: 1152285
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: the lower court erred in denying appellants the opportunity to present evidence to rebut the presumption of undue influence by the lower courts granting appellee's motion for summary judgment.

Text: Although four issues were presented on this appeal, issue number one is dispositive of the case and will be the only issue discussed. Pertinent parts of the chancellor's finding of fact and conclusion of law follow: Under circumstances where a confidential and fiduciary relationship exists, in this state it appears to be the well settled law that a presumption of undue influence arises which must be overcome by the proponents of a will by clear and convincing evidence. [citations omitted] It is further well settled in Mississippi that once a presumption of undue influence arises, the proponents of a will must prove by clear and convincing evidence a lack of undue influence; further, part of the necessary proof is that a proponent must show good faith on the part of the grantee/beneficiary; grantor's full knowledge and deliberation of her actions and their consequences; and advice of (a) competent person disconnected from the grantee and devoted wholly to the grantor/testator's interest. Will of Polk supra, at 817-818. It is also apparent under the authorities cited that there must be clear and convincing proof of each of these elements. In this case, as in McDowell, supra, it is clear by the testimony of Mrs. Lois Marsalis in her deposition that Mrs. Lehmann did not receive any independent advice or counsel prior to the execution of the will on February 14, 1981, or prior to the creation of the joint accounts and the deposit of $31,500.00 in oil lease proceeds. The Court finds that the Defendant, Mrs. Marsalis has conceded this by her testimony at her deposition. The Court therefore finds and concludes that a confidential and fiduciary relationship existed as between Mrs. Tamma Lehmann, the deceased, and Defendant Lois L. Marsalis beginning June 1, 1979, and continued thereafter until Mrs. Lehmann's death in August, 1984. Therefore, the Court finds that all transactions as between Lois Marsalis and Mrs. Tamma Lehmann from and after June 1, 1979, to the date of Mrs. Lehmann's death, as well as all transactions conducted by Mrs. Marsalis on behalf of Mrs. Tamma Lehmann during such time period are hereby declared to be void and set aside. The law of undue influence, confidential relationships and burden of proof is equally applicable to inter vivos gifts and testamentary matters. [citations omitted]. It is apparent that the learned chancellor was of the opinion that Mrs. Lehmann did not receive any independent advice or counsel in the matters involved here and that he was strongly influenced by that view. This Court has modified the test for rebutting a presumption of undue influence and no longer requires the independent advice of a competent person but instead requires a showing of the grantor's independent consent and action. Mullins v. Ratcliff, 515 So.2d 1183, 1193 (Miss. 1987). In Blissard v. White, 515 So.2d 1196 (Miss. 1987), Thera B. White died at the age of ninety one. She executed a will leaving her entire estate to one of her brothers, Dwight Blissard. Five nieces and nephew contested the will contending that there was a fiduciary relationship between the testatrix and Blissard and that Blissard exercised undue influence over her. Thera White had executed a general power of attorney empowering Blissard to act on her behalf and the contestants claimed that the attorney had done legal work for Blissard which rendered him incompetent to give independent advice to the testatrix. After a full trial, the lower court held that there was no undue influence exercised upon the testatrix and that her acts were her own free and independent expressions of her will. In affirming the judgment of the lower court, this Court stated the following with reference to independent advice and counsel: This case is controlled by Mullins v. Ratcliff, 515 So.2d 1183, 1193 (Miss. 1987). In Mullins, we declared that, before a bequest such as that here will be enforced, the legatee, Dwight, must show (1) his good faith; (2) the testatrix' full knowledge and deliberation of her actions and their consequences; and (3) the testatrix' independent consent and action. No serious doubts appear of Dwight's good faith. The evidence shows that Thera White was a strong willed and capable woman who was in charge of her financial affairs with only leg work aid from her brother. John Sibley's testimony is quite convincing that Thera, in willing her estate to her brother, was doing exactly what she desired to do. Sibley was competent to render independent advice despite the fact he had done legal work for Dwight (preparing a deed and two wills). We are not concerned with Sibley's independence so much as with Thera's, of which there is evidence in abundance. Indeed, were we to disqualify Sibley's advice, we would create a trap which would void bona fide gifts and bequests among family members in small towns and rural areas all over the state. Blissard v. White, 515 So.2d 1196, 1200 (Miss. 1987) In Matter of Will of Adams, 529 So.2d 611 (Miss. 1988), the parties stipulated that there was a confidential relationship between the testatrix and the beneficiary. The case proceeded to trial before the chancellor without a jury. At the close of the testimony, the chancellor found that Simm, the beneficiary, failed to overcome the presumption of undue influence and he found that the will was invalid. On appeal, this Court held that there must be a showing (by clear and convincing evidence) that Simm abused the relationship by asserting dominance over the testator. The Court further held that the facts did not mandate a holding that an abuse of confidential relationship of the type which gives rise to a presumption of undue influence existed between the testator and the beneficiary, and reversed and remanded for a new trial. This Court found in Minor v. Bertasi, 530 So.2d 168 (Miss. 1988) that though a father lived with and was financially and physically dependent on one son and relied on that son to contact an attorney, and another son regarding a conveyance of land to the two sons, the father was sharp mentally; was aware of his family and finances; was strong willed and was not susceptible to outside influence. We affirmed holding that the evidence supported the lower court's finding that there was no undue influence. This Court conducts a de novo review in determining whether or not the lower court was correct in granting a summary judgment and, in doing so, we follow the same procedure that is required of the trial court. Miss.R.Civ.P. 56. The movant has the burden of demonstrating that no genuine issue of fact exists while non-movant is given the benefit of every reasonable doubt. Newell v. Hinton, 556 So.2d 1037, 1041-42 (Miss. 1990); Dennis v. Searle, 457 So.2d 941, 944 (Miss. 1984); Brown v. Credit Center, Inc., 444 So.2d 358, 362 (Miss. 1983). We are of the opinion that the record in this case indicates that there was a genuine issue of fact on the question of undue influence and that the lower court committed reversible error in declining to permit the appellant to proceed with a full trial and to present evidence in rebuttal of the confidential relationship. Therefore, the judgment of the lower court is reversed and the case is remanded for a full trial on the merits. REVERSED and REMANDED. DAN M. LEE, P.J., and PRATHER, ROBERTSON, SULLIVAN, ANDERSON, PITTMAN and BLASS, JJ., concur. HAWKINS, P.J., concurs with specially concurring opinion joined by DAN M. LEE, P.J., and SULLIVAN, J.