Dolenz v. Vail, 200 S.W.3d 338 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2006, no pet.).
Creditor asserted that Decedent had granted him a security interest
under the U.C.C. in paintings held by Decedent’s trust as collateral for
the payment of legal fees. Creditor sought to take possession of the
paintings and the probate court denied the motion finding that it had no
jurisdiction to hear the case because the matters were decided in prior
proceedings, both at the trial and appellate levels.
The appellate court reversed. The court held that the probate court has
jurisdiction to hear Creditor’s motion because “his claim is a matter
relating to the distribution of [the] estate of a deceased person and
thus a matter ‘incident to an estate’” under Probate Code §§ 5(d), 5(f),
& 5A(b). Dolenz at 341. The court explained that collateral estoppel and
res judicata are not jurisdictional issues although they may affect the
merits of Creditor’s claim.
Moral: Assertions of res judicata and collateral estoppel do not negate
a court’s jurisdiction although they may impact the court’s ultimate
decision in the case.