Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 22-1955
View Summary for Case No. 22-1955
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Sarah Crane, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Ahlers and Chicchelly, JJ. Opinion by Ahlers, J. (7 pages)
Matthew Dickey appeals the district court’s dismissal of his petition for judicial review for lack of jurisdiction. OPINION HOLDS: Because Dickey did not substantially comply with Iowa Code section 17A.19(2) (2022), we affirm the district court’s determination that it lacked jurisdiction over the case.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 22-1971
View Summary for Case No. 22-1971
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Woodbury County, Roger L. Sailer, Judge. AFFIRMED. Heard by Greer, P.J., and Ahlers and Buller, JJ. Opinion by Greer, P.J. (16 pages)
Dean Christiansen appeals the district court’s dismissal of his state constitutional and common law tort claims against municipal employees and a municipality. OPINION HOLDS: Christiansen’s state constitutional tort claims no longer provide for recovery after Burnett v. Smith, 990 N.W.2d 289 (Iowa 2023). The district court correctly concluded that his negligence claim is exempted from liability under the emergency response exemption and, as those claims fail, his remaining common law tort claims also do not provide for recovery. We affirm.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 22-2045
View Summary for Case No. 22-2045
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Chickasaw County, Richard D. Stochl, Judge. REVERSED AND REMANDED. Heard by Bower, C.J., and Schumacher and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Schumacher, J. (12 pages)
David Roethler and Dale Roethler appeal the district court’s decision considering extrinsic evidence in interpreting the will of their late mother, Veronica Roethler. OPINION HOLDS: The will as written was not ambiguous. The district court improperly considered the testimony of the scrivener of the will to find Veronica’s intent was different from the language of the will. The court rewrote the will to include property in a trust that was not specified by the will to be included in the trust. We reverse the decision of the district court and remand for further proceedings.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 22-2067
View Summary for Case No. 22-2067
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Story County, John R. Flynn, Judge. APPEAL DISMISSED. Considered by Tabor, P.J., Buller, J., and Gamble, S.J. Opinion by Gamble, S.J. (3 pages)
George McGuire appeals the extension of a protective order. OPINION HOLDS: Because the protective order has expired, this appeal is dismissed as moot.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0049
View Summary for Case No. 23-0049
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Hancock County, Rustin Davenport, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Buller and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Buller, J. (9 pages)
A father appeals a custody-modification order. He contests the district court finding a substantial change in circumstances and its decision to place physical care with the mother. OPINION HOLDS: We find the father waived his substantial-change argument and affirm the district court’s modification placing the children in the mother’s physical care.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0064
View Summary for Case No. 23-0064
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Winneshiek County, Alan T. Heavens, Judge. AFFIRMED. Heard by Tabor, P.J., and Ahlers and Chicchelly, JJ. Opinion by Chicchelly, J. (9 pages)
Granddaughters Melissa Weber and Shelly Donlon appeal the order dismissing their petition that contests the will and trust of their grandmother, claiming that Nancy and Wayne Jordahl exercised undue influence over her and tortiously interfered with their inheritance. They further challenge the exclusion of their rebuttal witness. OPINION HOLDS: Because the district court did not abuse its discretion in its evidentiary ruling, we affirm the exclusion of the granddaughters’ rebuttal witness. Because substantial evidence supports the district court’s findings, we affirm the denial of the undue-influence and tortious-interference-with-a-bequest claims.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0167
View Summary for Case No. 23-0167
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Jackson County, Mark R. Lawson, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Buller and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Langholz, J. (12 pages)
Jay Claeys appeals from the district court’s grant of summary judgment on his challenge to the will of Ross River. OPINION HOLDS: Because Claeys failed to present sufficient evidence to create a fact dispute that River generally and notoriously recognized Claeys as his son, the district court properly concluded as a matter of law that Claeys is not an heir to River under Iowa Code section 633.222 (2021). And so Claeys lacks standing to challenge the will.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0260
View Summary for Case No. 23-0260
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Plymouth County, Patrick H. Tott, Judge. AFFIRMED AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS. Heard by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Chicchelly, JJ. Opinion by Tabor, J. (14 pages)
Siblings appeal rulings in litigation over their brother’s exercise of an option to purchase farmland in their mother’s will. OPINION HOLDS: Because we find no abuse of discretion, we affirm the orders denying the motions to amend. Finding the court properly relied on equitable conversion, we affirm the partial summary judgment for the brother. And because the court’s treatment of the rent and interest was proper, we affirm those rulings. But because the district court ordered the siblings and their spouses—who were not joined as parties to the action—to convey marketable title, we remand with instructions for the district court to address that issue.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0284
View Summary for Case No. 23-0284
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Webster County, Rustin T. Davenport, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Greer, P.J., Buller, J., and Mullins, S.J. Opinion by Greer, P.J. (8 pages)
DeNico Johnson appeals from the district court’s denial of his application for postconviction relief. Johnson reiterates his claim, asserting trial counsel failed to inform him that if he engaged in sexual exploitation of a student without using a pattern, practice, or scheme, the offense was not a felony and, if known, he would have elected to go to trial rather than plead guilty. OPINION HOLDS: Because Johnson did not establish he would have insisted on going to trial if he was told about sexual exploitation by a school employee, an aggravated misdemeanor, his claim of ineffective assistance fails. We affirm.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0306
View Summary for Case No. 23-0306
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Marion County, Brad McCall, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Buller and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Buller, J. (8 pages)
The father appeals from a custody decree placing physical care of a child with the mother. OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the physical-care ruling, finding the child’s wishes, the mother’s support of the child’s relationship with the father, and a preference for stability and consistency with a primary caregiver support the district court’s decree.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0329
View Summary for Case No. 23-0329
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Cerro Gordo County, James M. Drew, Judge. AFFIRMED AS MODIFIED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Buller and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Langholz, J. (12 pages)
Joseph Johnston appeals from the order granting in part his petition to modify the physical-care, visitation, and child-support provisions of the decree dissolving his marriage to Renata Johnston. OPINION HOLDS: Joseph has not met his heavy burden to modify the current physical care placement with Renata to joint physical care. Nor does his changed employment justify a significant boost in his visitation. Yet we agree with him that his weekly Wednesday night visitation should be overnight rather than just for four hours as the district court ordered. Given our deference to the district court’s fact findings, we cannot say that the court erred in declining to modify the child-support award. And it did not abuse its discretion in awarding attorney fees to only Renata and not Joseph. We likewise decline to award Joseph appellate attorney fees.
Filed Jan 10, 2024
View Opinion No. 23-0337
View Summary for Case No. 23-0337
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Katie Ranes, District Associate Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Schumacher and Buller, JJ. Opinion by Buller, J. (7 pages)
Paul Doherty, in his capacity as the administrator of the estate of John Doherty, appeals from the denial of his application for order requiring delivery of property. OPINION HOLDS: We affirm, finding the funds from the sale of John’s home did not belong to the estate and the administrator’s other claims are not preserved.