The Estate of Charles Thomas Mccraw, Deceased v. JoAn Likins

This appeal arises from a decedent’s testamentary obligation to distribute his estate in accord with a marital dissolution agreement. The trial court determined that the decedent’s codicil obligated his estate to pay joint debts that the decedent incurred with his fiancè, and his estate could not seek contribution from fiancè for paying more than half of the debts. The trial court also determined that this distribution did not violate the marital dissolution agreement that decedent had negotiated with his ex-wife. We affirm the trial court on these two determinations. We, however, reverse the trial court’s finding that the estate was not required to reimburse fiancè for payments that she made on the debts after the decedent’s death and before the trial court ordered the estate to pay the debt.