In re Probate Appeal of Cadle Co., 129 Conn. App. 814; 21 A.3d 572 (2011)
The executors of the Estate of F. Francis D’Addario (the “Estate”) filed an interim accounting with the Probate Court for the District of Trumbull. The Probate Court then allowed the Cadle Company (“Cadle”), an unsecured creditor of the Estate, to conduct discovery in reference to the management of the Estate’s assets and the concerns it had regarding the accuracy of the accounting.
Both the executors and Cadle appealed the discovery order and the Superior Court affirmed the order permitting discovery but remanding to the Probate Court. The Superior Court found that the scope of discovery ordered by the Probate Court was beyond its jurisdiction. Cadle appealed the Superior Court ruling.
On appeal, the Appellate Court decided the issue of whether the Probate Court had jurisdiction to allow a creditor to conduct discovery into the business judgment and operations engaged in by executors in managing estate assets.
The Appellate Court found that the Probate Court had the power, under Conn. Gen. Stat. §45a-175(g), to order broad discovery in an accounting proceeding. This power coincided with the same power that the Superior Court would have in a case involving a challenge to such accounting. Therefore, the Appellate Court reversed and remanded to the Superior Court to reinstate the original Probate Court discovery order.
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