Shoecraft v. Bloxham
Shoecraft v. Bloxham
Opinion of the Court
after stating the case, delivered the opinion of the court.
The conveyance to the company of the lands held by the trus- ^ tees pursuant to the contract' between those parties is essential to the value of the security offered for the bonds executed to the Security Construction and Trust Company, and to enable the complainant to discharge the trust accepted by him. But the contract being between .citizens of the State of Florida, a suit upon it could not be maintained by the railroad company in the Circuit Court of the United States^ and therefore could not be maintained by its assignee, the complainant. Section 629
It is contended, however, that the complainant is not the assignee of the contract of May 31, 1871, but a mortgagee in trust of the lands mentioned therein, and can therefore maintain the suit by reason of his citizenship in New York. ¥e cannot assent to this position. It is true the complainant is a mortagee in trust of such interest as the mortgagor had in the lands, but he brings the suit, not to foreclose the mortgage, but as one having a beneficial interest in the contract, and consequently a right to enforce it. The object of the suit is to perfect the title to .the lands mortgaged by enforcing the performance of the contract. The deed of trust sets out in full the contract, and conveys all the right, title and interest which the railroad company had or might thereafter acquire in and to the lands granted by the trustees by their contract of May 31, 1871. This conveyance of all right, title and interest “in and to ” the lands granted, or agreed to be granted, by the contract of sale, carried with it to the complainant an interest in the contract- so far as such lands were concerned, that is, the right
Decree affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- SHOECRAFT v. BLOXHAM
- Cited By
- 26 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- A suit to enforce the performance of a contract is a suit to recover the contents of a chose in action, within the meaning of § 629 of the Revised Statutes. A deed of trust, in the nature of a mortgage, set out in full a contract between the mortgagor and certain parties for the conveyance of several parcels of land to him, and then conveyed to the mortgagee all the right, title, and interest which he, the mortgagor, had, or might thereafter acquire, “ in and to ” the lands embraced by the contract: Held, that the conveyance was in legal effect an assignment of the contract; and that the assignee could not maintain, a suit for the enforcement of this contract in the Circuit. Court of the United States, under § G29 of the Revised Statutes, if the assignor could not have maintained the suit in such Circuit Court if no assignment had been made.