Helgason v. Merriman

Clara Helgason died testate in 1998. Her will named
Thomas Merriman as the personal representative, and the superior court appointed him as such. Helgason's heirs, her sons Leonard Helgason and Ken Wood, sought removal of Merriman as the personal representative, citing alleged conflicts of interest and undue influence. The superior court held a hearing and issued a ruling denying the request for removal. Helgason's sons appeal this ruling.

II. Facts and Proceedings

A. Facts

Clara Helgason died in Kodiak on September 20, 1998, at
the age of ninety, leaving two heirs, her sons Leonard Helgason and Ken Wood. Clara Helgason left a series of wills, and the last of these, dated November 5, 1996, was apparently admitted into probate in the superior court. In that will, Clara Helgason nominated a friend, Thomas Merriman, as the personal representative of her estate.

Clara Helgason and Thomas Merriman had a friendship that
began in July 1989, when Merriman flew with his wife and some friends to Terror Bay, where Clara Helgason lived at the time. Merriman and Helgason thereafter maintained a personal friendship. The Merrimans ran errands for Helgason and socialized with her from 1989 until her death.

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Click the case caption above for the
full text of the Court's opinion.

Because it was not an abuse of discretion to find that
the plaintiffs failed to either raise a real issue of a substantial conflict of interest, or show any hostility between the parties relevant to Thomas Merriman's status as personal representative, we Affirm the superior court's decision to retain Thomas Merriman as the personal representative of the estate of Clara Helgason.

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