Bailey v. Joseph
Bailey v. Joseph
Opinion of the Court
Opinion op the Couet by
Affirihing.
Appellant, Marion Bailey, an infant suing by his next friend, brought this action against appellee, Arch Joseph, to recover his homestead rights in a tract of land occupied by the latter, and for rent claimed to be due during the latter’s occupancy. The case was tried before a jury, and. at the conclusion of the evidence, the trial court directed a verdict in favor of appellee. To review the propriety of this ruling, this appeal is prosecuted.
The facts as disclosed by the very meagre record before us are as follows: Just prior to his death, Marion Bailey, appellant’s father, was living with his wife, Polly Jane Bailey, and three children by a former marriage, on a small farm on Wooton’s Creek, in Leslie County, Kentucky. This tract of land was worth less
It is the contention of appellant that his father was entitled to a homestead in the land in controversy, and that this homestead was for the benefit of his mother and her infant children until they reached their majority ; that the conveyance by his mother could not operate to defeat him of his homestead right in the premises. Appellant’s mother testified that her husband did not live upon the land in controversy at the time of his death. This is all the evidence there is upon the question of homestead. No witness pretends to testify that Marion Bailey, Sr., had any purpose or intention of moving upon the premises in controversy. So far as this record shows, he may never have had such an intention, but, on the contrary, may have contemplated moving elsewhere. In the absence of any evidence tending to show that Marion Bailey, Sr., either occupied the premises in question or intended to occupy them within a reasonable time, we fail to see how he could have acquired a right of homestead in the premises. Having failed to prove a light of homestead in his father, it necessarily follows that appellant failed to prove a right of homestead in
As appellant sought in this action to enforce only his homestead right in the premises, the judgment herein will not he conclusive of any other interest he may have.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.