Laborde v. Penn
Laborde v. Penn
Opinion of the Court
Peter Laborde, by his w:ll, dated in 1820, gave to his daughter, Zelima Dunton, the wife of the complainant, Hollis Dunton, four slaves, then in her possession, and two hundred acres of land “to her and the heirs of her body.” He also, gave her an equal share of the residue of his estate, along with three other children. After the death of the testator, to wit: in 1821, Hollis Dunton conveyed, by deed, to John B. Laborde, the land and slaves, given to his wife by her father's will, and her undivided share, of the residue, in trust, to the joint use of the husband and wife for life; to the survivor for life; after the death of the survivor to the children of the wife, or if she should die without issue, in the life time of her husband, to him absolutely. This deed was duly recorded in the office of the Register of Mesne Conveyances, for Edgefield district, where the parties lived. Another slave was delivered to Mrs. Dunton, by the executors of Peter Laborde, as her share of the residue. In 1828, the complainant, Maximilian Laborde, was substitued trustee, in the place of John B. Laborde, In 18 — , Mrs. Zelima Dunton died, leaving
With regard to the slaves, the question is, whether the conveyance of Hollis Dunton, to John B. Laborde, in trust, must be regarded as- a marriage settlement, and therefore void, for want of recording in the office of the Secretary of State. There is no doubt, but that the four slaves, mentioned in the testator’s will, were reduced into possession by the husband, his marital rights had attached upon them, and his conveyance of them was, therefore, merely voluntary. The case of Price vs. White, Bail. Eq. 244, is an express authority, that a voluntary settlement, made by a husband after marriage, must be regarded as a marriage settlement, and is void, for the want of recording in the Secretary’s office; and this is recognized in the case of Banks vs. Brown, 2 Hill, Ch. 558. The former case also determined, that when the husband makes a settlement of his wife’s interest, in an estate not yet reduecd into his
It is therefore ordered and decreed, that the bill be dismissed.
WM. HARPER.
From this decree of his Honor, the Chancellor, the complainants appealed and renewed their motion, in the Appeal Court, upon the grounds stated in the decree. The motion in the Appeal Court did not prevail; and the appeal was accordingly dismissed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.