Cocke v. Foote
Cocke v. Foote
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion .of the oourt;
C. S. Skidmore died testate in 1862, having, by his will, appointed John W. Griffin, and --- Carraway his executors. In October of that year, letters testamentary were granted by the probate court of Madison county, where the will was probated, to John W. Griffin, as executor, who qualified as such. In September, 1866, Benjamin S. Kicks recovered judgment, in the circuit court of Madison county, against the said John W. Griffin, as executor, etc., for upwards of $16,000.00. The letters testamentary of Griffin were revoked in November, 1866, when he ceased to be executor, etc. Administration was granted-to H. S. Fopte, jr., in December thereafter, and in May, 1867, the estate was declared insolvent. Settlement proceeded accordingly, and Foote was discharged from his administration in March, 1869. In. April, 1871, while there was no representative of the deceased, Kicks sued out an alias' fieri facias, to enforce his judgment, directed to the sheriff of Holmes county, commanding him “ of the goods and chattels, rights and credits of O. S. Skidmore, deceased,, in the hands of JohnW. Griffin, administrator, andtothers, to cause to be made the said sum” of $16,000.00, £i to satisfy said judgment.” This execution coming to the hands of the sheriff of Holmes county, was levied upon several lots of land) in that county, as the
Cocke, Jenkins & Ricks were made defendants. Neither bad faith nor knowledge of the facts above stated, are charged upon these parties. There was a demurrer, stating for cause, that the fi. fa. was an alias,'issued out of the proper court, upon a judgment against the executor named in the writ; that there was no offer to return the money paid by the purchasers; that the defendants had no notice of the motion to quash the writ of execution; that the writ was not void; and that the land was only lease-held. This demurrer was overruled, and the defendants answered. No issue is made by the answer, the allegations of the bill being substantially admitted; but it is stated, as a reason why the land brought no more than $80.00, that a suit was pending to enforce a lien for the purchase money, or price agreed to
The following are believed to be correct legal propositions, and that by them the case under consideration must be determined:
1. This property belonged to the administrator. The declaration of insolvency passed title absolutely. Code of 1871, §§ 1134, 1158; 2 How., 601.
2.' It mattered not that it had not been inventoried. If unknown or accidentally omitted, it was the duty of the administrator to return it when discovered, and of thé court to order it to be included, when brought to its knowledge. ■Code of 1871, § 1133.
3. So long as there was property unadministered, Foote was probably not legally discharged from further administering, though this view is somewhat speculative in the absence of all the facts, and not essential.
4. The judgment against Griffin should have been revived against his successor. Code of 1871, § 1182.
5. The purchasers acquired only the interest of Griffin, which was nothing. They were chargeable with at least
6. Title was in Foote, or, in abeyance.
7. The facts are exceptional, and the cases cited of title passing in virtue of sales under voidable executions, are not considered analogous. We are aware of no case like the one at bar. The cases cited are of judgments against the deceased in his life time, with executions bearing teste after his death. Hence the distinction. 7 How., 224; ib., 256 ; 9 S. & M., 216; 35 Miss., 63, and cases cited therein; 6 How., 352.
An examination of the case of Parker, administrator, v. Whiting’s administrator, 6 How., 352, shows it to have been in many respects like the one under consideration. There was judgment, in 1840, against an administrator, execution against the party defendant in' the judgment, and levy on property in his hands, but no sale took place ; an alias execution was issued returnable to May term of the proper court, 1841; this execution was superceded on the ground that, in March preceding (1841), the estate of which the. defendant in the execution ,was the representative, had been declared insolvent. The opinion of the court in that case was delivered by Ch. J. Sharkey, and the reasoning tends strongly, if not conclusively, to uphold the decree in the case at bar,
But it is provided by §1163, Code of 1871, incorporated from prior statutes, that, “ no suit or action which may be pending against an executor or administrator at the time the estate is reported insolvent, shall, on that account, abate, but maybe prosecuted to final judgment; and the judgment shall constitute a claim against the estate, though not registered as other claims, but shall have no priority over general-creditors,” etc. In the case now quoted from it is said, “ there is no provision as to judgments recorded upon the report of insolvency, and yet it must be manifest that such a case falls within the spirit of the statute so as to prevent the plaintiff
We are' of the opinion that the justice and equity of this case are with the complainant, and we so decide, as we think, ex equo ei bono, upon the case made by the record.
Decree affirmed*
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Cocke & Jenkins v. H. S. Foote, Adm'r, de bonis non
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. Chancery Court — Insolvent Estate — where E. as afiminstrator, debonis non, of S., reported the estate insolvent, and proceeded to settle up the estate, (and as he thought,) finally administered the same, but omitted to administer a certain tract of land ; and R. who had recovered a judgment against the former administra» tor, sued out aft. fa, and had the land sold by the sheriff, Seld: that the proceedings and sale were irregular and illegal, and that the sheriff’s deed conveyed no title to the purchasers. The judgment creditor should have revived against the administrator, de bonis non, and pioceeded according to the mode prescribed by law.