Lothian v. Lothian
Lothian v. Lothian
Opinion of the Court
The following is a copy of part of the bill of exceptions: “When the cause was called for trial, the plaintiff insisted the case should be tried and the evidence taken as a proceeding and trial in equity, and the defendants Davis & Voris insisted it should be tried as a special proceeding at law; but said Davis & Voris stated in open court it was immaterial to them which way the court ordered it tried, but did not consent to its being tried as an equity ease. Thereupon it was ordered by the court that it should be tried as an equity proceeding, to which order and ruling of the court the defendants Davis & Voris duly excepted. ’ ’ The defendants did not at any time demand that a jury be impaneled to try the issue, and, after expressing themselves as indifferent whether the trial should be at law or in equity, the mere general exception to the ruling of the court can give them no standing on that question in this court. If it were desirable that the question of the constitutionality of the mode of trial should be tested, there shouldhave been no equivocation about it. There should have been a demand that the issue be tried as at law, and a jury should have been demanded. It is provided by section 2910 of the Code that “the motion
II. It is not disputed that the defendants received two thousand dollars of the seven thousand dollars money judgment awárded to the plaintiff as alimony. It is claimed that this was no more than reasonable ■compensation for the services rendered. Evidence was taken upon this question, and the testimony of the witnesses is in conflict. It is not our purpose to set out the evidence. A careful examination of the whole record leads us to the conclusion that the one thousand dollars allowed by the district court is ample compensation for ail the professional services rendered by the defendants for the plaintiff.
The plaintiff is now about seventy-five years of age. It appears from the petition for divorce and alimony filed by the defendants that she was married to Daniel Lothian in the year 1836, and that they lived and cohabited together until 1889, when the husband abandoned her, and lived in adultery with another woman. It further appears in the evidence that all of the children of the marriage are dead. In this time of her trial the plaintiff did not want a divorce. She wanted to compel the husband to pay alimony, which she thought would induce him to return to her, and be faithful to his marriage vows. It is no doubt true that she was ready and willing to do anything that she was advised to do by her attorneys. There was no defense to the action. The charge of adultery was confessed by a default. In view of all these, and-many other considerations that might be named, not the least important of which is the trust and confidence reposed in an attorney by a person in the situation of this aged woman, we think that it should be held that the evidence fairly shows that she never consented that the defendants should have two thousand dollars for their' services. If she used language implying such consent,
The order of the district court is aeeirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Harriet N. Lothian v. Daniel Lothian, Appellee Davis & Vorhis
- Status
- Published