Bowden v. Schatzell
Bowden v. Schatzell
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion o£ the Court.
This Court concurs in opinion with both the Chancellors, and affirms their respective decrees, except so far as the last decree orders the payment, by the defendants, John & Curtis Bolton, of the money secured by their bond to the clerk of the Court of Common Pleas.
There is no doubt, but that the complainant is intitled to the fund in the custody of the Court of Common Pleas, as well as to an as
But it was argued, that, however it might be with respect to Schatzell, yet the Boltons were improperly made parties. The rule of equity is, that all persons who have an interest in the subject of .the suit, must be made parties ; and it seems to me, that the interest of the Boltons is sufficiently palpable. Certainly they have an interest in the question, whether the bond to the clerk of the Court shall be transferred to the complainant, so as to enable her to sue on it; and if the establishment of her demand against Schatzell is to lead to such transfer, they have an interest in respect to that. The bond was made payable on a contingency, and it is probable, that when it was executed, neither the parties, nor the Court, looked forward to its ever being enforced. Have they no interest in the question, whether it shall be put in a course of being enforced ? They have an interest in the bond, and it would be refining to say, that they have no interest in the question of the complainant’s recovery against Schatzell. It is true, that if the fund, and the bond in the hands of the clerk of the Court, had been subject to attachment, the complainant might have sued Schatzell alone, and recovered judgment against him ; and it would have been unnecessary to make the Boltons parties. As I have observed, however, the rules of law, and of equity, are different with respect to the proper parties to a suit; but even then it may be questioned, whether the Court of Law would have ordered a transfer of the bond, without affording the Boltons an opportunity to shew cause against it. Is not justice more completely done by making them parties in equity,
We do not think, however, that we can-decree the payment of the money, for the reasons I have before assigned. The Court of Equity cannot order the Court of Law to cancel the bond, or in-join it from enforcing, or transferring it ,• and cannot, therefore, by its decree, protect the defendants from being compelled to pay the amount over again. We can only establish the complainant’s demand against Schatzell.
It is therefore declared, adjudged, and decreed, that the absent defendant, John P. Schatzell, as survivor of the firm of John P. Schatzell <Sz Company, is justly indebted to the complainant to the amount of the judgment mentioned, and set forth in the proceedings, and that he pay the said amount accordingly. And it is ordered, that the decree of the Chancellor be modified in conformity to this decree.
Decree modified.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.