Mason v. Paschal
Mason v. Paschal
Opinion of the Court
This bill was filed in the Circuit Court of Warren County to recover a judgment upon a note, and to subject to the. satisfaction thereof, the interest of O. G. Broyles in certain lands conveyed to his children under the will of his deceased wife. The note sued on was executed by the defendant, O. G. Broyles, to his co-defendant, Finney & Paschal, proprietors of the Cumberland Female College, at McMinnville, in settlement of an indebtedness incurred by Broyles in the education, support, and maintenance of his three daughters at said school. The three tracts of land mentioned in the will were devised by Susan W. Broyles to her four
The Chancellor was further of opinion that the said O. G. Broyles owns the usufruct, rents, profits, and proceeds of the land described in the pleadings, to the extent of a reasonable support for himself individually, and that complainant was entitled to subject this personal interest to the payment and satisfaction of this decree. The cause was referred to the Master, to take proof and report, first, the , value of the rents and profits of the three tracts of land, comprising three hundred and twenty-five acres, devised to the daughters; second, what would be a reasonable support for O. G. Broyles out of said rents and profits. The Master, in obedience to this reference, reported, first, that $405 would be a reasonable rental value for the three tracts of land; second, that the sum of $200 per annum would be a reasonable support for said O. G. Broyles out of said rents. The Chancellor was of opinion, upon the coming in of said report, that the value of the individual support of O. G. Broyles, fixed at $200, was not supported by the proof. He thereupon fixed said support at $150 per annum. The Court then appointed the Clerk and Master receiver of the lands described in the pleadings, to collect the rentals and apply them to the payment of complainant’s debt.
The defendant, Broyles, alone appealed to this
In the first place, the will expressly provides that upon the arrival at age of the youngest daughter the land therein devised shall be equally divided among the four daughters, share and share alike. The arrival at age of the youngest daughter is the period fixed for distribution, after which time the land is not to be held by the trustee for the joint benefit of the children, but each is to come into possession of her individual share. The will does not charge these individual shares with the reasonable support of O. G. Broyles, and hence, * upon the distribution, each daughter takes her share, disincumbered of any charge. 'Yet the Chancellor proceeded upon the idea that O. G. Broyles was entitled to a support for life out of the rents and profits of these lands, and he decreed that a sufficiency of said rents should be collected byv the receiver until complainant’s debt should be discharged. The youngest daughter arrived at the age of twenty-one after the appointment of the receiver, and the lands were then subject to division under the will, but under the decree of the Chancellor each share is virtually
The next question is, whether or not complainant is entitled to subject to the payment of his debt the individual support of O. G. Broyles, until the youngest daughter arrives at age. We think not. It is obvious that O. G. Broyles has no alienable interest in this trust, and it is not such a property right as may be reached by execution at law or subjected by bill in equity. The beneficiary does not own any property in said trust, nor is there any provision for an accumulation of property. The beneficiary is entitled to a mere equity in the rents and
It is obvious that the beneficiary of this equity may decline to avail himself of the support therein provided for him — in which event, the entire rents and profits must be appropriated to the education, support, and maintenance of the daughters. A Court of Equity would have no power, in such event, to determine what would be a reasonable support, and subject it to the claims of creditors, whether the beneficiary had elected to avail himself of the charge of the testatrix or not. We are of opinion that the defendant, O. Gr. Broyles, has no such property or alienable interest in this trust as may be subjected to the payment of his debts. The decree of the Chancellor in this respect is reversed, but in all other respects affirmed.
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