Opinion ID: 1883585
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: facts and proceedings in the court of appeals

Text: ¶ 10. The Court of Appeals addressed the following issues: (1) voiding of the 2001 will; (2) probate of the 1973 will; (3) interpretation of reference to my homestead in the 1973 will; (4) John's debts to the estate; (5) attorneys' fees; (6) trial judge's examination (view) of Woodfield Farms property without a court reporter present; and (7) recusal of the trial judge. On March 21, 2006, the Court of Appeals handed down a 7-1-2 decision reversing the chancery court judgment and remanding this case to the chancery court for a new trial; however, Sharon Woodfield filed a motion for rehearing, and the Court of Appeals granted the motion for rehearing, withdrew the original opinion, and substituted an opinion which affirmed the special chancellor in all respects except on the issue of attorney's fees, which issue was remanded to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with the opinion. In re Estate of Woodfield v. Woodfield, 968 So.2d 475, 2006 WL 3365370, 2006 Miss. App. LEXIS 872 (November 21, 2006). This 5-3-2 opinion drew a dissent by Presiding Judge Lee, and the dissent was joined by Presiding Judge Myers and Judge Barnes. After the Court of Appeals denied John's motion for rehearing, John filed with us his petition for writ of certiorari in which he requested we consider five issues, which we restate here for clarity: (1) whether Judge Leslie Southwick's participation in this case on rehearing was proper; [5] (2) whether the special chancellor should have been disqualified from hearing the case; (3) whether the special chancellor erred in ruling that the term homestead encompassed the entire 324 acres of real property devised to Sharon; (4) whether the special chancellor erred in ruling that the withdrawal of the 2001 will revived the 1973 will; and (5) whether the special chancellor erred in awarding attorneys' fees. By order entered on July 26, 2007, we granted, in part, John's petition for writ of certiorari. Woodfield v. Woodfield, 959 So.2d 1051 (Miss.2007). We chose only to address the issue of what effect the withdrawal from probate of a will executed in 2001 had on a . . . will executed in 1973. See M.R.A.P. 17(h) (upon a grant of certiorari, this Court may limit the question on review). [6]