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Case No. 23-1009

In re Estate of White

County:
Scott

In the Matter of the Estate of Barbara Jean White

Rowan Sean Piper, f/k/a Nathan John Marcy, appellant

Attorney for Appellant

Rowan Sean Piper, self-represented appellant

Court of Appeals

Court of Appeals Opinion

Opinion Number:
23-1009
Date Published:
Aug 21, 2024
Summary

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Stuart P. Werling, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Badding, P.J., Langholz, J., and Bower, S.J.  Opinion by Badding, P.J.  (9 pages)

            A party appeals the denial of his petition to open a small estate in probate.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the petition only challenges one of the independent grounds for the denial of his petition, we affirm the denial under the unchallenged grounds.  SPECIAL CONCURRENCE ASSERTS: I join the court’s well-reasoned opinion in full but write separately to emphasize three points.  First, our opinion affirming does not prevent Piper from filing a new petition.  Second, we do not decide that a party must be represented by an attorney to petition to open administration of a small probate estate.  And third—contrary to Piper’s assumption—it does not appear that the district court dismissed his petition because he lacked an attorney either.

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