## Facts

- Clara Mowrer, an elderly woman, suffered a hip fracture in 1995 and became dependent on her niece, Peggy Eddie, and Peggy’s husband, Maurice Eddie.
- On August 5, 1995, Mowrer executed a durable power of attorney naming Peggy and Maurice as agents.
- Immediately after execution, multiple bank accounts and other assets were transferred from Mowrer to the Eddies; by the end of 1995, approximately $594,715 of her assets had been transferred by use of the power of attorney and by transactions bearing Mowrer’s signature.
- Additional funds were obtained from Mowrer’s certificates of deposit through cashier’s checks, and stock certificates valued at more than $300,000 were removed from her safe-deposit box and arranged to pass to the Eddies at Mowrer’s death.
- The Eddies used substantial portions of the transferred assets for personal purposes and could not fully account for the disposition of Mowrer’s property.
- After living with the Eddies for about a year and a half, Mowrer moved to a care facility, hired independent counsel, revoked the power of attorney, and demanded an accounting and return of property.

## Issues

1. Whether the district court abused its discretion by denying motions to disqualify Mowrer’s counsel, declare a mistrial, and reopen discovery.
2. Whether Montana or Kansas law governed whether asset transfers made in Kansas resulted from undue influence.
3. Whether substantial evidence supported the finding that the Eddies procured the transfers through undue influence and related misconduct.

## Decision

- The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s judgment in full.
- The court held the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying disqualification, mistrial, and additional discovery, finding no adequate showing of prejudice.
- The court applied Montana law to the undue-influence determination.
- The court held the evidence supported findings that Mowrer was competent, did not intend large gifts to the Eddies, and that the Eddies obtained her property through fraud, duress, and undue influence.
- The court left intact the monetary judgment of $807,582.44 and the trust imposed on certain property to secure repayment, and it affirmed denial of the Eddies’ guardianship and conservatorship petition.

## Legal Principles

- A holder of a durable power of attorney stands in a fiduciary relationship with the principal and must act for the principal’s benefit, with accountability for asset management and transfers.
- Undue influence may be found where a confidential or fiduciary relationship exists, the influencer benefits substantially from transactions, and circumstances show dominion or control inconsistent with the principal’s free and voluntary intent.
- Appellate review of discretionary trial-management rulings (e.g., disqualification, mistrial, discovery) is for abuse of discretion.
- Appellate review of factual findings on undue influence is for clear error, with deference to the trial court’s credibility determinations and weighing of evidence.
- Courts may order restitution and impose a trust on property to secure repayment when transfers are procured through undue influence or fiduciary misconduct.

## Conclusion

The court upheld a judgment requiring the Eddies to repay assets taken from an elderly relative after obtaining power-of-attorney authority, concluding that the transfers were not intended gifts but the product of undue influence and fiduciary abuse, and it affirmed protective remedies including restitution, a trust to secure repayment, and denial of guardianship and conservatorship.


Mowrer v. Eddie, 979 P.2d 156 (Mont. 1999)