83 N.J. Eq. 198 | New York Court of Chancery | 1914
This suit is brought by a wife against her husband to recover two sums of money which she claims to have loaned and advanced to him, the first being a sum of $600 advanced on April 26th, 1905, and the second being the sum of $350 advanced on February 13th, 1906. She claims that, these advances were loans, while the husband claims that the money was placed in his hands for the purpose of being invested in stock of a corporation to be organized and known, as stated in his answer, as The Eagle Leather Goods Company. The only witnesses to the transaction are the parties to the controversy, and they alone are interested. The rights of creditors have not intervened. It was held by the court of errors and appeals in Cole v. Lee, 45 N. J. Eq. 779, to be well settled that on proof that a husband has received his wife’s money a court of equity will compel him and his repre
In order to bolster up his side of the case the husband pro-' duces a certificate of stock issued by The Eagle Leather Goods Company marked Ho. 1 for forty-two and one-half shares standing in his name and issued on July 2d, 1906, the date of the
I am therefore of opinion that the husband should account to the wife for the principal of the money so advanced to him by her.
In addition to the principal the wife demands the payment of interest. An examination of the testimony will disclose that there was a total omission of evidence tending to show that the husband at any time promised to pay interest. Ordinarily I understand the rule to be that as between husband and wife interest is not allowable during the continuance of the marriage relation unless it was specially stipulated for. This seems to be the idea of Vice-Chancellor Pitney in Collins v. Babbitt, 67 N. J. Eq. 165.
The decree will therefore provide for the payment of the principal sum, without interest to the date of the decree.