G.R. No. 55509 - Roberts vs. Leonidas

Case Summary (G.R. No. 55509)

Factual Background

Edward M. Grimm, an American resident of Manila, died on November 27, 1977, survived by his second wife, Maxine Tate Grimm, and their two children, Edward Miller Grimm II and Linda Grimm, and by two children of a prior marriage, Juanita Grimm Morris and Ethel Grimm Roberts. Grimm executed two wills and a codicil on January 23, 1959 in San Francisco, California, one disposing of his Philippine property and another disposing of property outside the Philippines; both favored Maxine and her two children and provided legitimes for the children of the first marriage. The wills and codicil were presented for probate in Probate No. 3720 of the Third Judicial District Court of Tooele County, Utah on March 7, 1978, and the Utah court admitted them to probate by order dated April 10, 1978 after consideration of a stipulation by the parties' attorneys.

Interlocutory Transactions in Utah

On April 25, 1978 the parties executed a compromise agreement in Utah which designated Maxine, Pete and Ethel as personal representatives of Grimm’s Philippine estate, reserved to Maxine a conjugal share not less than $1,500,000 and certain properties, and provided that the four children would share equally in the net distributable estate with specified minimums for Ethel and Juanita. A supplemental memorandum was executed the same day. The Utah agreement recognized obligations for estate fees and contained computations of the net distributable estate.

Initiation of the Intestate Proceeding in Manila

Notwithstanding the Utah probate and compromise, Ethel Grimm Roberts filed intestate proceeding No. 113024 in Branch 20 of the Court of First Instance of Manila on January 9, 1978 to settle Grimm’s estate and was named special administratrix. On March 11, 1978 Maxine filed an opposition and motion to dismiss on the ground of pendency of the Utah probate and tendered a copy of Grimm’s Philippine will. The opposition was later withdrawn and, at Maxine’s behest, the court appointed Maxine, Ethel and Pete as joint administrators, apparently pursuant to the Utah compromise.

Administration and Partition in Branch 20

The joint administrators submitted inventories and, with court approval, sold estate assets including the Palawan Pearl Project and large blocks of RFM Corporation shares. The declaration of heirs and project of partition filed by counsel resulted in Judge Conrado M. Molina’s order of July 27, 1979 adjudicating to Maxine one-half of the Philippine estate and one-eighth to each child, with no mention of the will. Subsequent counsel substitutions and motions to defer were filed, and a certification by the Assistant Commissioner of Internal Revenue reflecting estate tax payments and non-objection to transfer was noted by the court.

Petition in Branch 38 to Probate Wills and Annul Partition

On September 8, 1980 counsel for Maxine, Pete and Linda filed in Branch 38 a petition to probate Grimm’s two wills (already probated in Utah), to set aside the 1979 partition approved by Branch 20, to revoke the letters of administration, to appoint Maxine executrix, and to compel accounting and recovery from Ethel and Juanita Morris. The petition alleged fraud in the Branch 20 proceedings, illegality of the Utah compromise, that Grimm died testate, and that the partition was contrary to the wills. Ethel Grimm Roberts moved to dismiss the Branch 38 petition. Judge Tomas R. Leonidas denied the motion to dismiss by order of October 27, 1980.

Proceedings in the Supreme Court

Ethel Grimm Roberts filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition in the Supreme Court seeking dismissal of the Branch 38 testate proceeding, or alternatively consolidation of the proceedings in Branch 20 and prior resolution of the validity of the Utah compromise. The Supreme Court considered whether the respondent judge acted with grave abuse of discretion in denying dismissal and whether the probate petition in Branch 38 was proper given the pending intestate proceeding in Branch 20 and the Utah probate.

Issues Presented

The principal questions were whether a petition for allowance of wills and to annul a partition approved in an intestate proceeding in Branch 20 could be entertained by Branch 38 after probate of the wills in Utah, and whether the denial of Ethel’s motion to dismiss by the respondent judge amounted to grave abuse of discretion or lack of jurisdiction.

Ruling of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court dismissed the petition for certiorari and prohibition. The Court held that the respondent judge did not commit grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack of jurisdiction in denying the motion to dismiss. The Court directed consolidation of the intestate case with the testate proceeding and ordered that the judge assigned to the testate proceeding continue to hear both cases. The Court allowed Ethel Grimm Roberts to file within twenty days from notice of finality an opposition and answer to the Branch 38 petition if she deemed prior pleadings insufficient, and it ordered that Juanita G. Morris, who had appeared in the intestate case, be served with copies of orders, notices and other papers in the testate case. The temporary restraining order was dissolved and no costs were imposed.

Legal Basis and Reasoning

The Court reasoned that probate of a will is mandato

Case Syllabus (G.R. No. 55509)

Parties and Posture

Ethel Grimm Roberts was the petitioner in the certiorari and prohibition proceeding before the Supreme Court.
Judge Tomas R. Leonidas, Branch 38, Court of First Instance of Manila was the respondent judge whose order denying a motion to dismiss was assailed.
Maxine Tate-Grimm, Edward Miller Grimm II, and Linda Grimm were respondents in the underlying petition filed in Branch 38 seeking probate of wills and annulment of a prior partition.
The Supreme Court dismissed the petition for certiorari and prohibition and dissolved the temporary restraining order.

Key Facts

Edward M. Grimm died on November 27, 1977 at age seventy-eight and was a resident of Manila at the time of his death.
The decedent executed two wills and a codicil in San Francisco on January 23, 1959, one disposing of his Philippine estate and the other disposing of property outside the Philippines.
The decedent was survived by his second wife Maxine Tate Grimm, their two children Edward Miller Grimm II and Linda Grimm, and two children of a prior marriage, Juanita Grimm Morris and Ethel Grimm Roberts.
The two wills and the codicil were presented for probate in Probate No. 3720 of the Third Judicial District Court of Tooele County, Utah on March 7, 1978 and were admitted to probate by order dated April 10, 1978.
On April 25, 1978 the parties executed a compromise agreement in Utah that designated Maxine, Pete and Ethel as personal representatives of the Philippine estate and provided for the distribution formula and reservation of Maxine’s conjugal share.
Ethel Grimm Roberts filed intestate proceeding No. 113024 in Branch 20, Manila CFI on January 9, 1978 and was named special administratrix.
Maxine initially filed an opposition and motion to dismiss the intestate proceeding but subsequently withdrew that opposition and, together with Ethel and Pete, were appointed joint administrators by Branch 20.
With court approval, the joint administrators sold the Palawan Pearl Project for P75,000 and sold 193,267 shares of RFM Corporation for P1,546,136.
Judge Conrado M. Molina in Branch 20 adjudicated one-half of the Philippine estate to Maxine and one-eighth to each of the four children on July 27, 1979, with no mention of the will in the order.
A certification of the Assistant Commissioner of Internal Revenue dated October 2, 1979 stated that Maxine paid P1,992,233.69 as estate tax and penalties and interposed no objection to transfer of the estate to heirs.
On September 8, 1980 Maxine, Pete and Linda through counsel filed in Branch 38 a petition to probate the two wills, annul the 1979 partition, revoke the letters of administration, appoint Maxine executrix, and compel accounting and return of properties from Ethel and Juanita Grimm Morris.

Procedural History

The Utah probate court admitted the two wills and codicil on April 10, 1978 upon a stipulation among counsel.
The Utah compromise agreement was executed April 25, 1978 and included designation of personal representatives and distribution terms.
Branch 20 o