Hynson v. Jeffries
Mississippi Court of Appeals
697 So.2d 792 (Miss. App. 1997)
Robert Hynson's will created a trust holding all his oil and gas interests, providing that "[a]ll of the income of the trust shall be paid to my said wife," Carolyn, during her lifetime, with the remainder eventually split among descendants of Carolyn, his daughter Julie Jeffries, and his son. After Hynson's death, Carolyn claimed she was entitled to all royalty payments as "income" under the will, invoking the open mines doctrine and Mississippi's Uniform Principal and Income Law (UPIL), which applies "in the absence of any contrary terms in the trust instrument" and directs that 27.5% of gross royalty receipts be added to principal as a depletion allowance. Trustee John Jeffries (defendant) argued the royalties should instead be invested for the remaindermen, with Carolyn receiving only the resulting interest; the trial court agreed with Jeffries, finding the will's own language controlled under the common-law open mines doctrine, and Carolyn appealed.
Whether the owner of a life estate in a trust holding producing oil and gas properties is entitled to receive a portion of the actual royalty proceeds, or only interest earned on those royalties once invested, when the trust instrument does not expressly define whether "income" includes royalties.