Court Opinion

ID: 9527934
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 03:35:43.156067+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:26:17.869169
License: Public Domain

McCALEB, Justice
(dissenting).
The majority opinion, while acknowledging that the cost of administering a community estate, including the attorney’s fee, is chargeable to “the decedent’s share of the community and the wife’s share equally”, nevertheless holds in this case that all expenses of administration shall be borne by the decedent’s share of the community because an administration of the community “was totally unnecessary except for the purpose of facilitating the computation and payment of the inheritance taxes due by the estate of the decedent alone under the very complicated federal inheritance tax laws.” I cannot subscribe to this view.
The community of acquets and gains may be dissolved in two ways: by death of one of the spouses or by judicial action. During the existence of the community, each spouse has a present property interest in one-half of the community, the wife’s interest, however, being subject to the administration and control of the husband as head and master. Phillips v. Phillips, 160 La. 813, 107 So. 584; Succession of Wiener, 203 La. 649, 14 So.2d 475. Upon its dissolution by death, title to one-half of the property vests at once in the survivor and the other half in the heirs of the deceased, subject to any community *141debts.1 Webre v. Lorio, 42 La.Ann. 178, 7 So. 460; Thompson v. Vance, 110 La. 26, 34 So. 112. Of course, if the community owes no debts, the joint owners may divide the property among themselves without formal administration. Burton v. Brugier, 30 La.Ann. 478; Succession of Welch, 36 La. Ann. 702; Succession of Dumestre, 42 La. Ann. 411, 7 So. 624. And, even if there are debts, an administration is not obligatory unless the creditors demand it. Succession of Keppel, 113 La. 246, 36 So. 955; Dickson v. Dickson, 36 La.Ann. 453; Newman v. Cooper, 46 La.Ann. 1485, 16 So. 481 and Harman & Stringfellow v. LeGrande, 151 La. 253, 91 So. 726.
On the other hand, if there are community debts, the community maintains a fictitious existence under the administration of the husband or the husband’s estate until the outstanding obligations are settled. Succession of Dumestre, supra; Tomme v. Tomme, 174 La. 123, 139 So. 901; Succession of Ratcliff, 212 La. 563, 33 So.2d 114 and Washington v. Palmer, 213 La. 79, 34 So.2d 382. The reason for this rule respecting the fictitious existence of the community is that, since the husband is personally and individually liable for all community debts, he or his succession should have control of the community property until the debts are liquidated. See Succession of McLean, 12 La. Ann. 222. Therefore, settlement of the husband’s succession includes and carries with it the rights of the wife insofar as her community interests may be involved. Ibid; Succession of Lamm, 40 La.Ann. 312, 4 So. 53; Succession of McCan, 49 La.Ann. 968, 22 So. 225 and Succession of Keppel, supra.
Under Article 2410 of the LSA-Civil Code, the wife has the privilege of exonerating herself from liability for the debts contracted during the marriage by renouncing the community. She may also accept it under the benefit of inventory and this acceptance has been held to be merely an expression of her consent to receive the residue' of the community, if any, after the debts have been paid. Phillips v. Phillips, supra.
Thus, it clearly appears from the foregoing authorities2 that, when there is an administration of the estate, the costs attendant thereto are chargeable to the entire community because the surviving wife obtains the benefit of having her residuary interest in the common property ascertained and liquidated. Hence, it matters not, in my opinion, whether the administration was conducted for the purpose of facilitating the computation and payment of inheritance taxes due by the decedent or not — for, in, *143any case, the surviving wife has obtained the benfit of an administration and the ultimate ascertainment of her residuary interest in the community, which she will receive unburdened by debt. Indeed, the administration being an accomplished fact, the reason for it is, to my mind, immaterial.
Apart from this, I entertain grave doubt that, a succession of this magnitude, having assets of nearly $10,000,000 and current debts aggregating $713,180.51, could have been readily transmitted to the heirs and the surviving spouse without an administration. And this, despite the " contrary opinion expressed by the executor who, paradoxically enough, has assessed his commission (two and one-half percent under Article 1683 of the LSA-Civil Code) on the entire community estate.3 The record shows that the debts were paid during the course of administration and the community benefited therefrom to that extent. It is also shown that there were 198 separate filings in the succession proceedings as of the date of the trial of the rule to fix inheritance taxes. These filings involved petitions for authority to carry on operating businesses; carry out contractual commitments ; enter into agreements; sell properties; grant mineral leases and sell stocks at private sale. It is perfectly apparent that all of these transactions were necessary acts of administration and that they redounded to the benefit of the community.
I respectfully dissent.

. The phrase “subject to any community debts” has been explained to mean that, although title is immediately vested in the survivor and the heirs, the right of possession and dominion of their respective shares of the community is suspended until the debts are paid. See Factors’ & Traders Ins. Co. v. Levi, 42 La.Ann. 432, 7 So. 625.

. Except Succession of Lewis, 192 La. 734, 189 So. 118, which, as intimated by the majority opinion, is plainly wrong.

. The attorneys’ fees are calculated on the whole estate under the New Orleans Bar Association’s minimum fee provisions. These charges have unquestionably been formulated by the Bar Association on the basis of the applicable jurisprudence.