COURT OF APPEALS DECISION DATED AND RELEASED February 19, 1997 |
NOTICE |
A party may file with the
Supreme Court a petition to review an adverse decision by the Court of
Appeals. See § 808.10 and
Rule 809.62, Stats. |
This opinion is subject to
further editing. If published, the
official version will appear in the bound volume of the Official Reports. |
No. 96-0449
STATE
OF WISCONSIN IN COURT OF
APPEALS
DISTRICT II
In the Matter of the
Estate of
WILMA M. RADIGAN,
Deceased:
PATRICIA RADIGAN
BROPHY,
Appellant,
v.
MICHAEL E. RADIGAN,
Personal
Representative for the
Estate of WILMA M.
RADIGAN,
Respondent.
APPEAL from a judgment
of the circuit court for Kenosha County:
BRUCE E. SCHROEDER, Judge. Affirmed.
Before Snyder, P.J.,
Nettesheim and Anderson, JJ.
PER
CURIAM. Patricia Radigan Brophy appeals from a judgment
disallowing her claim against the estate of her late mother, Wilma M.
Radigan. Because we conclude that the
trial court properly ruled that Radigan did not gift an investment account to
Brophy, we affirm the trial court's dismissal of Brophy's claim that her mother
converted her property when she withdrew funds from the account.
In 1974, Radigan opened
an investment account in her and Brophy's names as joint tenants with the right
of survivorship. Although the
signatures of Radigan and Brophy were required to withdraw funds from the
account, Radigan did not adhere to this requirement when she withdrew funds
from the account. She solely controlled
the account from the time it was opened until the time of her death. Brophy deposited no funds to the account;
over the years, Radigan disbursed funds from the account to Brophy, her
creditors and children. Brophy was
unaware of the account's existence until the late 1980s and did not learn that
Radigan had been withdrawing funds from the account until 1993.
Radigan died in January
1994, and her will was admitted to probate in April 1994. Brophy filed a claim against the estate
alleging that her mother converted funds from the investment account during the
years 1989 through 1993 in the amount of $84,800. The trial court concluded that there was no evidence that Radigan
intended to gift the account to Brophy, notwithstanding its establishment as a
joint account with a right of survivorship.
In the absence of a gift, Brophy could not sustain her claim for
conversion.[1] Brophy appeals.
The elements of a gift
are: (1) donor's intention to give; (2)
actual or constructive delivery to the donee; (3) termination of the donor's
dominion over the subject of the gift; and (4) dominion in the donee. See Giese v. Reist, 91
Wis.2d 209, 218, 281 N.W.2d 86, 90 (1979).
The trial court found that none of the elements was established in this
case.
On appeal, Brophy
contends that Radigan's intent to gift the account is apparent from her
creation of a joint tenancy account.
While donative intent is presumed if the form of ownership is a joint
tenancy with the right of survivorship, this presumption can be rebutted by
clear and convincing evidence that the donor intended to retain sole control
over the property. See Johnson
v. Mielke, 49 Wis.2d 60, 76-77, 181 N.W.2d 503, 511-12 (1970); see
also First Wis. Trust Co. v. United States, 553 F. Supp. 26,
30 (E.D. Wis. 1982). The putative
donor's conduct subsequent to the establishment of the account may be relevant
and probative of the putative donor's intent at the time the account was
created. See Johnson,
49 Wis.2d at 77, 181 N.W.2d at 512.
Brophy argues that the
estate presented insufficient evidence to rebut the presumption that Radigan
intended the joint account to be a gift to Brophy. The trial court disagreed.
We will uphold its findings of fact on the question of Radigan's intent
if those findings are not clearly erroneous.
See § 805.17(2), Stats.
The trial court found
that Radigan handled the account in the same manner from its opening until she
died. There was no evidence that
Radigan altered her behavior in any matter or relinquished sole control over
the account. She freely managed the
fund and spent it as she saw fit. She
did not make Brophy aware of the existence of the account. The court found that Radigan's actions were
totally inconsistent with any dominion over the account by Brophy, even if the
account was a joint tenancy. The court
found that all of Radigan's actions with regard to the account indicated her
intention to retain control of it prior to her death.
The trial court's findings
of fact are not clearly erroneous. In
concluding that Radigan did not gift the account to Brophy, the trial court
properly considered all incidents of the account, not just the fact that it was
jointly titled with a right of survivorship.
We do not agree with
Brophy that because the fund was established arguably for her benefit,
Radigan's donative intent was established.
Although income generated by the account was paid by Radigan to Brophy
and to others for her benefit over the years, such conduct does not establish a
gift in the absence of the putative donor's intention to give, termination of
the donor's dominion over the account and dominion in the donee. See Giese, 91 Wis.2d at
218, 281 N.W.2d at 90.
As Brophy's brief
acknowledges, the fact that funds were distributed from the account to Brophy
or for her benefit is subject to various inferences. One inference is that Radigan intended to gift the account to
Brophy. Another inference is that
Radigan did not intend to gift the account to Brophy but wanted to use its
funds for her benefit and provide for a disposition of the account at Radigan's
death. The trial court drew the latter
inference. That it did so is not
clearly erroneous based upon this record.
By the Court.—Judgment
affirmed.
This opinion will not be
published. See Rule 809.23(1)(b)5, Stats.
[1] "Conversion is the wrongful or unauthorized exercise of dominion or control over a chattel." Farm Credit Bank of St. Paul v. F&A Dairy, 165 Wis.2d 360, 371, 477 N.W.2d 357, 361 (Ct. App. 1991). The party alleging conversion must prove that it was in possession of or entitled to immediate possession of the property converted. See id.