Chamberlain v. Maynes
Chamberlain v. Maynes
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
By the deed of trust of Kelly to Maynes, the former’s daughter Mary took a vested remainder in fee in an undivided half of the property, after the death of her father and mother. Kelly’s deed did not create a separate use trust, but an ordinary estate in remainder, after two life estates, which was alienable by the remainderman in the ordinary way. The trust was active during the existence of the two life estates, in order to preserve the remainders, but that was the extent of its real purpose. At the death of the surviving life tenant, Mrs. Kelly, the title in remainder became a title to present possession in Mary or her alienee. That is the plain intent of the donor as expressed in the deed. The words are that the trustee shall hold the property, “ so that the said Mary A. K. Reilly shall be entitled to receive one half of the rents, issues and profits ” and the minor children of Susan Maynes the other half. It does not admit of doubt that a court of equity would have decreed a conveyance of the legal title to the cestui que trust, and where that is the case the trust will be considered as executed without a formal conveyance by the trustee : Rife v. Geyer, 59 Pa. 393. As already said, Mary Reilly’s estate in remainder being vested
It is true the deed gives the trustee a power of partition or of sale in case partition could not be made without spoiling the whole, but as already said this was only to be exercised when Mary Reilly should be desirous of selling, or when the youngest child of Susan Maynes should reach the age of twenty years, and partition or sale and distribution of proceeds was desired. The power in the trustee did not depend on his judgment, and was not an essential part of the trust which would keep it alive against the will of the cestui que trust, but was merely ancillary, and for convenience of administration. When Mary Reilly or her grantee chose to terminate the trust and treat the title as vested in law, the mere incidental authority of the trustee to make partition when it should be desired by the cestui que trust cannot be allowed to stand in the way.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Joseph Chamberlain, Mary L. Sharpless and William H. Keichline v. Philip L. Maynes
- Cited By
- 11 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Trusts and trustees — Statute of uses. Where a court of equity would decree a conveyance of the legal title to the cestui que trust, the trust will be considered as executed without a formal conveyance by the trustee. Where a deed of trust provides that the trustee shall convey when the cestui quo trust shall “ be desirous of disposing of her interest in said premises,” the cestui que trust after her determination to end the trust, has a title which is available in ejectment without a previous deed from the trustee; and this is the case although the deed of trust gives to the trustee the incidental authority to make partition when it shall be desired by the cestui que trust. Trust — Presumption of execution — Title to support ejectment. A deed conveyed real estate to a trustee, to hold one half, subject to a life estate in the grantors and the survivor of them, for the benefit of the grantors’ daughter who was to receive the rents and profits of said one half after the death of the grantors, with power to the trustee to convey the portion allotted to her on partition whenever she is desirous of disposing of it. Held, that the daughter took a vested remainder in fee after the life estate, which remainder was alienable by her in the ordinary way, and that, on the death of the life tenants, her grantees could maintain ejectment against cotenants, excluding them from possession, without a previous conveyance from the trustee, which, as it would be decreed in equity on their demand, would be treated as executed.