HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-19-15 1.
ESTATE OF JUNE K. OTTO, : IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF
DECEASED : CUMBERLAND COUNTY,PENNSYLVANIA
ORPHAN'S COURT DIVISION
NO. 21-08-0544
AMENDED EXCEPTIONS TO ORDER OF COURT n
DATED JANUARY 23,2015 rri
(71
AND NOW this I91 day of March, 2015, come EDWIN R. OTTO and;I kTRIPCK
MYERS, Co-Executors of the Estate of June K. Otto, by and through their atto'rr4s,-t vin &-i
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McKnight, P.C., and respectfully file exceptions to the Order of Court dated January 2�,
and pursuant to the Order dated February 27, 2015, and signed by The Honorable Edward E.
Guido, for the following reasons:
1. Paragraph 3 of the Order of Court dated January 23, 2015, states that the
Petitioner, Mr. Randy Cramer, is to "reimburse the Estate in the amount of $8,898.72,
representing 20.5 percent of the subdivision costs incurred by the Estate."
2. The testimony at trial established that the Estate of June K. Otto paid a total of
$43,408.40 to Brehm-Lebo Engineering, Inc. in order to subdivide the Decedent's farm property
located at 331 East Old York Road, Carlisle, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, into a northern
and a southern tract(See Respondent's Exhibits#8 and#9).
3. The testimony at trial by Co-Executor Patrick Myers also established that the
Estate paid a total of $5,582.00 in outside attorney fees to Attorney Hubert Gilroy in order to
obtain subdivision approval (See Respondent's Exhibit#18).
4. The sole purpose of the subdivision work performed by Brehm-Lebo Engineering,
Inc. and outside legal counsel was to transfer the resulting southern tract to Petitioner as
referenced in Decedent's Last Will and Testament.
5. ' The total farm acreage at the property known as 331 East Old York Road,
Carlisle, and owned by the Decedent was 130.15 acres (See Respondent's Exhibits #10 and#11).
6. After the subdivision, the southern tract to be conveyed to Petitioner was
determined to be 37.63 acres (See Respondent's Exhibits#13, #14, and#15).
7. At trial, the Co-Executors position was that Petitioner should be responsible to
reimburse the Estate of June K. Otto the entire cost of engineer and outside counsel fees, as the
testimony of Respondent's witnesses was that the entire expense was necessary in order to
receive subdivision approval.
8. The Court erred in not finding either that Petitioner was solely liable for the entire
engineering expense of$43,408.40, and outside attorney fees of$5,582.00, or that responsibility
for the applicable costs should be equally divided between Petitioner and Respondent.
9. In the alternative, the Court erred in determining that the apportionment was for
Petitioner to be responsible for 20.5% of the engineering fees only.
10. Based upon the acreages of the original farm and southern tract created by the
subdivision approval, the mathematical percentage would be 28.9%, which would result in
$12,545.03 of the engineering expenses and $1,613.20 of the outside attorney fee expenses.
DESIGNATION OF CONTENTS OF RECORD
TO BE TRANSCRIBED
11. Pursuant to Orphans' Court Rule 7.2, Co-Executors hereby request that the
testimony of Douglas Brehm of Brehm-Lebo Engineering, Inc., and the testimony of Co-
Executor Patrick K. Myers be transcribed.
12. Along with the above-designated transcription of testimony, the Co-Executors
hereby request that Respondents' Exhibits 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, and 18, be made available to
the Honorable Edward E. Guido.
13. In the alternative and pursuant to Orphans' Court Rule 7.2, the Co-Executors
hereby rely upon the Respondents' exhibits already entered into evidence in this matter, together
with the Brief filed in support of their Exceptions and the upcoming argument scheduled herein.
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WHEREFORE, Respondent respectfully takes exception to Paragraph 3 of this
Honorable Court's Order dated January 23, 2015, and requests either that Petitioner be
responsible to pay all of the engineering and outside counsel fees and expenses, an equal one-
half of all of said expenses, or an apportioned amount of 28.9% of both fees and expenses based
upon the respective acreages of the original and subdivided property.
Respectfully Submitted,
IRWIN &McKNIGHT, P.C.
Dated: March 19, 2015 By:
Douglas GyMiller, Esquire
Supreme Court ID No. 83776
West Pomfret Professional Building
60 West Pomfret Street
Carlisle, Pennsylvania 17013
(717) 249-2353
Attorney for Co-Executors
Edwin R. Otto and Patrick K. Myersf
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I, Douglas G. Miller, Esquire, do hereby certify that I have served a true and correct copy
of the foregoing document upon the persons indicated below by both facsimile and first class
United States mail, postage paid in Carlisle, Pennsylvania 17013, on the date set forth below:
DAVID A. MILLS, ESQUIRE
BLAKEY, YOST, BUPP & RAUSCH, LLP
17 EAST MARKET STREET
YORK, PA 17401
Date: March 19, 2015 IRWIN & McKNIGHT,P.C.
4(j" "/4,
Doug as G Miller,Esquire
Supreme Court ID No. 83776
West Pomfret Professional Building
60 West Pomfret Street
Carlisle, Pennsylvania 17013-3222
(717) 249-2353