Allen v. McDonald
Allen v. McDonald
Opinion of the Court
Frank D. Allen, for many years one of the executors of the last will and testament of Scott McDonald, deceased, filed a petition in this case asking that he be allowed additional compensation in order that he might pay an attorney whom he had employed to resist exceptions to his final account. The trial resulted in a judgment sustaining certain of the exceptions, and from this judgment the petitioner appealed. In 1900, Scott McDonald died testate, and two years later Allen was appointed to fill a vacancy in the number of executors, and acted in this capacity until his resignation was accepted August 19,1919, and his final account as such executor approved and settled on the fourth day of November, 1919. In March, 1918, the then executors filed their annual reports for the years 1916 and 1917. To these reports exceptions were filed. A trial was had upon the exceptions on February 3, 1919, and judgment was rendered by the trial court sustaining the exceptions. From this judgment, Frank D. Allen, one of the executors, appealed. "While the appeal was pending, Allen filed in the superior court a petition and report praying for an order approving the final accounts fixing the amount of compensation to be paid to him on account of services rendered as executor and attorney for the estate and asking that he be discharged as such executor. As above
When the exceptions were filed to the appellant’s report, he employed Alex M. Winston, an attorney-at-law, to defend against them. When the order of November 4,1919, was entered, Mr. Winston had rendered all the services which he was required to render, with the exception of preparing and filing the reply brief and arguing the case orally in this court. The executor prosecuted an appeal from the order sustaining the exceptions, and in In re McDonald’s Estate, 110 Wash. 366, 188 Pac. 523, the judgment of the trial court in sustaining the exceptions was reversed and the cause remanded with direction to overrule the exceptions. After the remittitur in that cáse was filed in the superior court, the appellant presented an application requesting that he be allowed compensation in order that he might pay Mr. Winston for the services which he had rendered in resisting the exceptions. The matter of allowing additional compensation came on for hearing and testimony was taken. The court made findings of fact in which it was stated that $1,500 was a reasonable fee. To thisofinding no exception has been taken, and the parties seem to be in accord that the fee is reasonable if additional compensation is to be allowed.
The first question is whether the appellant was required in the hearing in the trial court at the time the exceptions were sustained, to offer testimony as to what would be a reasonable additional compensation to him on account of the necessity of employing an attorney to resist the exceptions. The respondent’s
The next point is that the judgment, when the remittitur wrent down, was one directed by this court and
There is another contention that the appellant should not be allowed compensation because he did not ask for it while the cause was pending in this court and before the remittitur was returned to the trial court. The question presented here was whether the trial court erred in sustaining the exceptions to the final account. Upon the appeal a new element could not be brought into the case. Had the request been made while that case was pending here it would have been an attempt to introduce into the case an element which was not in it in the trial court, and, as above pointed out, which was not required to be litigated in that court at the time the matter of the exceptions to the account
The judgment will be reversed, and the cause remanded with directions to the. superior court to enter a judgment for the sum stated in the findings as reasonable additional compensation.
Parker, C. J., Holcomb, and Mitchell, JJ., concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- In the Matter of the Estate of Scott McDonald. Frank D. Allen v. Ruth McDonald
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Executors and Administrators (160, 167)—Final Account— Additional Compensation—Attorney's Fees—Time for Application. Tbe failure of afi executor, upon the hearing in the trial court of exceptions to his final account, to present testimony as to the reasonable additional compensation due him on account of the employment of an attorney to resist the exceptions, which were sustained by the court, would not foreclose proof upon such issue upon a rehearing by the trial court after reversal of its order sustaining the exceptions. Appeal (494)—Decision—Powers and Duties oe Lower Court— Incidental Relief. Where a judgment sustaining exceptions to an executor’s final account was reversed and remanded without directions to enter a specific judgment, upon which the trial court entered judgment overruling the exceptions, it was entitled to consider as incidental to such judgment the amount of compensation to be awarded the executor for attorney’s services in resisting the exceptions. Same (375)—Review—Matters Not Before Lower Court. On appeal from a judgment of the trial court upon an executor’s final account to which exceptions had been sustained; appellant was not required to present the question of allowance of attorney’s fees in resisting the exceptions, since such question had not been litigated in the lower court and there was no evidence in the record upon which the appellate court, could base a directed judgment.