EAST. LOUIS – Wealthy widow Marcia Billhartz spends time in Florida but resides in Illinois, U.S. District Judge Stephen McGlynn ruled on Nov. 5.
He rejected federal jurisdiction over a suit she filed against stepson Ward Billhartz and sent it to Madison County circuit court where it began.
Marcia sued Ward in August, claiming he froze her out of a trust that her late husband Warren Billhartz established.
Warren ran First National Bank of Collinsville as principal shareholder, sold it to United Missouri Bank, and founded First Collinsville Bank.
He divorced Ward’s mother Norma in 1978 and married Marcia in 1979.
Marcia named First Collinsville Bank, Ward’s trust, and bank director Mark Zavaglia as defendants.
She sought an order allowing her to sell shares of the bank as she saw fit or requiring the bank to buy her shares.
She owns about 45 percent of the bank.
She sought an accounting back to 2006, when Warren died.
Defendants removed her suit to district court, claiming it involved citizens of different states.
Bank counsel Brian Lamping of St. Louis wrote, “Plaintiff is a resident and citizen of the state of Florida.”
In September, Marcia moved to remand the suit to Madison County.
Her lawyer Christopher Byron of Edwardsville wrote that she splits her time almost evenly between Illinois and Florida but her center of gravity is Illinois.
He wrote that she lived in Illinois her entire life, owns a home in Illinois, and holds family gatherings there.
He wrote that her doctors and bank accounts are in Illinois.
Chief District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel presided at that point, but the court clerk assigned the suit to McGlynn when he joined the court.
He found Marcia met all tests for Illinois domicile.
“She considers Illinois her permanent residence and has the intention to remain here indefinitely,” McGlynn wrote.
“Her husband is buried in Illinois where she also has a burial plot.”
He found that her siblings, nieces and nephews reside in Illinois.
“Although she obtained a Florida driver’s license, registered vehicles in Florida as well as Illinois, and filed taxes in Florida, it was all for tax purposes,” he wrote.
On the same date, after McGlynn entered the order, Marcia and defendants jointly moved to stay the proceedings so they could settle their dispute.