Barbara Branum, the plaintiff, sought to invalidate a property transfer made by her mother, Corrine W. Akins, who held the property in trust for Branum, to her brother, Melvin L. Akins. Branum alleged that her mother breached her fiduciary duty by making this transfer, and that Melvin committed fraud and conspiracy in accepting the property. The transfer involved the assumption of a $29,392.25 secured debt on the property. The trial court ruled in favor of Branum against her mother, awarding her $34,607.75 in damages plus 10% pre-judgment interest, but dismissed the claims against Melvin. On appeal, the court affirmed the trial court's ruling, noting that in a prior appeal, it found no evidence supporting claims of fraud against Melvin, thus upholding the validity of the transfer concerning him. The appeal addressed only the appropriate judgment for Corrine's breach. Costs of the appeal were assigned to Branum and her surety. An appendix details the trust's history, including a 1961 deed and the financial arrangements between Branum and her mother.
Mrs. Akins was obligated to sign the deed of trust but not the promissory note to AmSouth. In 1995, she and her husband faced financial difficulties, resulting in missed payments on the AmSouth loan, which was about 147 days overdue by late July 1995. AmSouth typically considers foreclosure after 90 days of delinquency. Although Mrs. Akins attempted to monitor the loan status, her access was restricted by her daughter, Branum. On July 25, 1995, Mrs. Akins transferred the trust property to her son, Larry Akins, despite the absence of initiated foreclosure proceedings. She felt desperate to act quickly due to the risk of losing the property. Initially, she offered to sell the property to her other daughter, Jeannette Walker, but received no interest. An appraiser valued the property at $64,000, and while Larry Akins knew of this value, he was hesitant to purchase it. The transfer was contingent on Larry agreeing to pay off Branum's loan, of which she was unaware at the time. Larry secured a bank loan of approximately $41,600 to finance the purchase, using the property as collateral, and paid AmSouth $29,392.25 to settle Branum's debt. Branum gained nothing from this transfer and only learned about it in September 1995, prompting her to sue her mother and brother. She alleged breach of fiduciary duty against Mrs. Akins and fraudulent acquisition of the property by Larry Akins, seeking recovery of all proceeds from the trust property since 1961, interest, and $150,000 in punitive damages.
