O'Keefe v. Rice
O'Keefe v. Rice
Opinion of the Court
The complainants’ bill concedes, that the administratrix might have defended herself at law, as to all the matters stated. The pleas of plene administravit, and plene administravit prater, are exactly suited to such a defence. The only grounds upon which she seeks relief against the judgment at law, are, her own incapacity to manage the administration, and her neglecting to defend herself, in consequence of being misadvised, and misinformed, by her counsel.
If one having matters proper for a ; defence at law, neglect to make it, equity will not, in general, relieve against the judgment; nor are the mistakes, or negligence,' of counsel, in the conduct of a defence, a sufficient ground for relief. Ware v. Horwood, 14 Ves. 30, Stephenson v. Wilson, 2 Vern. 325.
Individual hardships may arise from enforcing these, or any other general rules, and, possibly, this case may furnish an instance ; but I have not been able to discover in it one circumstance, to take
The. decree of the Circuit Court must, therefore, be reversed, and the complainants’ bill dismissed, with costs; and it is so ordered, and decreed.
Decree reversed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.