Castelli v. Castelli

This is a case of first impression. It requires that we determine whether the payment of funeral and other expenses for a decedent may properly be used to offset the judgment in a citation proceeding when the legatee who incurred those expenses used property of the estate to meet those expenses, acting in the belief that he was also the executor of decedent’s estate. We hold that such expenses may properly be used to offset a judgment ordering the legatee to surrender estate properties in the legatee’s possession to the actual executor.

Respondent, Russell Castelli, and petitioner, John…