07/20/2021 IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT JACKSON Assigned on Briefs June 1, 2021 STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DELINQUENT TAXPAYERS 2015 (MANFRED STEINHAGEN) Appeal from the Chancery Court for Shelby County No. TX-2017-1 Walter L. Evans, Judge ___________________________________ No. W2020-00981-COA-R3-CV ___________________________________ This appeal arises from the court-ordered sale of real property to satisfy unpaid property tax owned by a living trust. After the property was sold, the trustee, acting pro se, moved to set aside the sale, asserting a violation of the trust’s due-process rights. The trial court dismissed the motion because the trustee was not a licensed attorney and was thus unqualified to represent the trust in a legal proceeding. For the reasons explained below, we have determined that the trial court correctly dismissed the motion because the pro se trustee is not licensed to practice law in Tennessee. We also dismiss this appeal on the same ground because the trustee signed the notice of appeal on behalf of the trust, and a non- attorney may not represent a trust in our Tennessee courts. See ELM Children’s Educational Trust v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 468 S.W.3d 529, 530 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2014); see also Tenn. R. Civ. P. 11 and Old Hickory Eng’g & Machine Co, Inc. v. Henry, 937 S.W.2d 782, 786 (Tenn. 1996). Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed. Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Chancery Court Dismissed FRANK G. CLEMENT JR., P.J., M.S., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which JOHN W. MCCLARTY and ARNOLD B. GOLDIN, JJ., joined. Manfred Steinhagen, Bethel Springs, Tennessee, pro se. Gregory S. Gallagher, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellee, Shelby County, Tennessee. OPINION In March 2017, Shelby County filed a lawsuit to collect delinquent land taxes under Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-5-2405. Among the named defendants was the Poor Immigrants Living Trust (“the Trust”), then owner of real property at 2207 Freemont Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee (“the Property”). In February 2019, the Property was sold at auction to satisfy the Trust’s tax debt. In April 2019, Manfred Steinhagen, acting in his capacity as the trustee of the Trust, filed a pro se Motion for Hearing, asserting that the Property was sold without due process. Following a hearing, the trial court denied Mr. Steinhagen’s Motion. In its order, the trial court explained that it dismissed the Motion for Hearing because Mr. Steinhagen is not a licensed attorney and thus not qualified to represent the Trust. For completeness, the trial court also addressed the merits of Mr. Steinhagen’s argument and concluded that the Trust was not denied due process. The court found that the Property was legally sold, and the Trust was notified of its right of redemption. This appeal followed. STANDARD OF REVIEW In actions tried upon the facts without a jury, appellate courts review the trial court’s findings de novo upon the record, accompanied by a presumption of the correctness unless the preponderance of the evidence is otherwise. Kelly v. Kelly, 445 S.W.3d …
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