133 Mo. App. 718 | Mo. Ct. App. | 1908
Plaintiff, a lawyer, brought this action before a justice of the peace against defendants Avho are husband and wife, to recover an attorney’s fee for services rendered the Avife in a divorce suit instituted by the husband. It appears from the evidence introduced at the trial in the circuit court that the husband had brought suit against his Avife for a divorce on grounds derogatory to her character. She had no means of her own to defend the suit and so told plaintiff at the time she invoked his services in her behalf.' He explained that if she had a meritorious defense, his fees would be allowed as alimony against the plaintiff, AArho had an estate of about $2,000 in value, and that his charge for his services to her Avould be fifty dollars. She then engaged the attorney and gave him a statement of the facts of the case. The attorney advised her that she not only had a good defense, but was the aggrieved party and, as such, was entitled to a decree in her favor. Thereupon, she instructed him to prepare and file an ansAver and cross petition and also to make application for temporary alimony, including suit money. The attorney prepared all these papers and was about to file them when husband and wife became reconciled, agreed to liAre together and the husband
Thus instructed, the jury returned a verdict in favor of both defendants. Plaintiff appealed.
The first question to engage our attention is whether the facts adduced by plaintiff disclose a liability on the part of the husband for his wife’s attorney’s fees which may be enforced by the attorney, not in the divorce suit, but in an independent action. Here is a woman whose good name and character were assailed in court by her husband. As the husband dismissed the suit, we must assume he unjustly accused his wife. Being innocent and wholly without means to pay a lawyer to defend her, she was entitled to employ one at the expense of her husband. He was bound to provide her with the necessaries suitable to their station in life and the protection of her fair name was as much a necessary as were food, raiment and shelter. In many jurisdictions, it is held that the attorney employed by a wife to defend a divorce suit to which her defense is meritorious may prosecute an independent suit against the husband for the recovery of his fees. [Conant v. Burnham, 133 Mass. 503; Porter v. Briggs, 38 Iowa 166; Clyde v. Peavy, 36 N. W. 883; Sperwin v. Maben, 43 N. W. 292; Preston v. Dobbin, 65 Iowa 285; McCurley v. Stockbridge, 62 Md. 422; Sprayberry v. Merck, 30 Ga. 81; Gossett v.
The judgment is affirmed.