Baltimore County Circuit Court rules son owns house, but must pay

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Oct 14, 2008 by Danny Jacobs

A Sparrows Point man can keep his dead mother's former home but must repay her estate $25,000 for bonds that he and his wife cashed for their personal use, a judge and jury ruled in Baltimore County Circuit Court.

The decisions end a three-year legal battle between Richard Wisniewski and his sisters, Christine and Bernadette, who were named representatives of their mother's estate by the county's Orphans' Court on Nov. 29, 2004, exactly one week after Estelle Wisniewski died.

The jury of four men and two women deliberated about two hours last week before deciding that Richard and his wife, Dorothy, did not have authority to cash the bonds.

Retired Judge Christian M. Kahl then upheld the validity of a disputed deed to Estelle Wisniewski's home, now owned by Richard and Dorothy, at the conclusion of the two-and-a-half-day trial. A jury cannot decide a question of equity, lawyers on both sides said.

Wayne S. Goddard of Cuomo & Goddard LLP in Towson, who represented the sisters, declined to comment on the case but said an appeal is being considered. Goddard said he expects the estate's administrative matters in Orphans' Court to be resolved soon; the matters had been stayed pending the outcome of the circuit court case.

Evan J. Feldman, the lead attorney for Richard and Dorothy, said Kahl's decision ended "four years of struggle" to ensure Richard could continue to live in his childhood home. But Feldman, of Sirody, Freiman & Feldman P.C. in Pikesville, disagreed with the jury's decision.

"We believe the plaintiffs did not prove a lack of authority for my client to cash the bonds as he did," Feldman said.

Estelle Wisniewski was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable form of blood cancer, in October 2003, according to an amended complaint filed in September 2005. The lawsuit alleged Richard and Dorothy Wisniewski forged Estelle Wisniewski's signature on bonds and other financial holdings in order to redeem and cash them.

An estimated $75,000 in assets was taken from Estelle Wisniewski without her knowledge and placed into bank accounts opened by her son and daughter-in-law in July 2004, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit also alleged that in March 2004, Richard added himself as a joint tenant on the deed to his mother's Hinton Road home, so that title automatically passed to him by right of survivorship upon her death. The revised deed was prepared without Estelle Wisniewski's knowledge and not "knowingly signed" by her, according to the lawsuit.

Richard, in response to interrogatories that were part of court records, said his mother asked him to cash all of her bonds and sign some in her name in April 2004. Estelle Wisniewski eventually gave a bank manager verbal permission to allow Richard to cash her bonds without her being present, according to his statement. Estelle Wisniewski added her son's name to some of her bank accounts and deposited proceeds from her bank account into his, according to Richard Wisniewski's interrogatory responses.

Richard also said his mother asked him in January 2004 to hire a lawyer so his name could be added to the deed to her house, according to his statement.

Richard lives in the home and is listed as the sole owner in state property records. He also has a brother, who was not part of the proceedings because he is not a personal representative to his mother's estate, Feldman said. Richard has had no relationship with his siblings since his mother died, Feldman said.

Both Feldman and Goddard called the case hard to try because of the family connections involved. Goddard praised Kahl for running an efficient trial and opposing counsel for their professionalism.

"Any kind of case that deals with family matters is emotionally difficult," Goddard said.

Wisniewski v. Wisniewski

Court: Baltimore County Circuit Court

Case No: 03C05003924

Proceeding: Jury and Non-Jury Trial

Judge: Christian M. Kahl

Outcome: Plaintiff in jury trial, defendant for bench trial

Award: $25,000

Dates: Incident: March 2004 to July 2004; Suit filed: April 6, 2005; Disposition: Oct. 7-8, 2008

Plaintiff's Attorneys: Wayne S. Goddard of Cuomo & Goddard LLP in Towson and Emily K. Lashley of Towson.

Defense Attorneys: Evan J. Feldman of Sirody, Freiman & Feldman P.C. in Pikesville, Mark C. Franceschini of Owings Mills, and Douglas S. Sandhaus of Lauraville.

Counts: Conversion of bonds and property other than real estate; conversion of real property; also sought declaratory judgment