Friedling v. Freedman

U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Friedling v. Freedman, 44 App. D.C. 191 (D.C. Cir. 1915)
1915 U.S. App. LEXIS 2701
Orsdel

Friedling v. Freedman

Opinion of the Court

Mr. Justice Van Orsdel

delivered tbe opinion of tbe Court:

This is not a creditor’s bill to subject tbe property of an absconding debtor to tbe satisfaction of an alleged indebtedness, as in Droop v. Ridenour, 9 App. D. C. 95, tbe case relied *193upon by counsel for appellant. It is an attempt by tbe plaintiff in a pending action in tort for damages to restrain the defendant from selling or disposing of his real estate. A court of equity is without jurisdiction to enjoin such a conveyance by a possible debtor to await the future possibility of a judgment in favor of a creditor whose status, as such, depends upon the outcome of a pending suit. Before such equitable relief in an independent action can be invoked, there must be an existing judgment at law or a fixed and definite claim, which either is or can be made a lien upon the specific property. Griffin v. Nitcher, 57 Me. 270; Brown v. Long, 36 N. C. (1 Ired. Eq.) 190, 36 Am. Dec. 43; Board of Public Works v. Columbia College, 17 Wall. 521, 21 L. ed. 687.

The rule is elementary that a creditor cannot assail as fraudulent' an assignment or transfer of property by a debtor until the debt has been established by a judgment in a court of competent jurisdiction. Scott v. Neely, 140 U. S. 106, 35 L. ed. 358, 11 Sup. Ct. Rep. 712; Cates v. Allen, 149 U. S. 451, 37 L. ed. 804, 13 Sup. Ct. Rep. 883, 977. Much less will the mere probability of such a conveyance by an undetermined debtor sustain an action on the complaint of a possible creditor. The decree is affirmed, with costs. Affirmed.

Reference

Full Case Name
FRIEDLING v. FREEDMAN
Cited By
3 cases
Status
Published
Syllabus
Equity; Ixjunction. Equity is without jurisdiction to restrain, at the instance of the plaintiff in a pending action of tort, the conveyance by the defendant in that action of his property for the alleged purpose of defeating the collection of a possible recovery in the tort action. (Distinguishing Droop v. Ridenow, 9 App. D. C. 95.)