28 A.2d 445 | Pa. Super. Ct. | 1942
Lead Opinion
KENWORTHEY, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which RHODES, J., joined.
Argued March 2, 1942. On July 26, 1934 plaintiff, Pearl Simmons, entered a judgment of record against David Simmons, which thereby became a lien on certain land owned by him. On May 15, 1935, David Simmons conveyed this land, through a straw man, to himself and his wife, Cecile *394 Simmons, the appellee, as tenants by the entireties. These deeds were recorded on May 16, 1935. David Simmons died December 29, 1939, leaving a will, in which he named his son, James Simmons, as executor, and letters testamentary were issued to him. On May 6, 1940, a praecipe for writ of scire facias sur the above judgment, naming `David Simmons, deceased, James Simmons, Executor', as defendant, and Cecile Simmons, as terre-tenant, was filed, and the writ issued same day, and was served on Cecile Simmons on May 13, 1940. On July 16, 1940, James Simmons, executor of the will of David Simmons, for and on behalf of the estate of David Simmons, deceased, filed a paper admitting that there was no known defense to the judgment aforesaid and authorized the prothonotary to enter judgment in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant in the sum of $1000, with interest from October 4, 1931, as specified in the original judgment, which was done.
A case-stated was then filed, by which the plaintiff and the terre-tenant asked the court below to decide — reserving the right to appeal — whether, on May 6, 1940, when said writ of scire facias issued, the judgment abovementioned was a lien on the property owned by Cecile Simmons, by virtue of the deed to her and David Simmons as tenants by entireties, and the death of David Simmons as aforesaid. The court below held that it was not and entered judgment for Cecile Simmons. The plaintiff appealed.
The question to be decided is: Where land, subject to a valid judgment, is conveyed by deed, which is at once recorded, does the lien of the judgment bind the land in the possession of the terre-tenant for a period of five years from the date of the recording of the deed, even though the judgment was not subsequently revived against the judgment debtor by scire facias within five years of the entry of the judgment? The question is not without difficulty and the decisions of the Supreme Court are not all in harmony, but we are of opinion *395 that the language used in some of its latest pronouncements settles the question in the affirmative.
The very recent case of Farmers National Bank Trust Co., touse, c. v. Barrett,
In that case, the plaintiff bank held a judgment against Miller entered May 19, 1927. On November 15, 1927, Miller conveyed a piece of land bound by this judgment to Greene County Amusement Company. The deed was recorded November 18, 1927. On May 12, 1932, a scire facias was issued to revive the judgment, but the terre-tenant was not brought in or served. Judgment was taken on June 21, 1932 against the original defendant. On that day the assignee of the judgment issued a scire facias to revive thejudgment obtained on the first scire facias, naming the Amusement *396
Company as terre-tenant. Judgment on this scire facias was entered January 6, 1933. In the meantime three judgments were entered against the Amusement Company on June 21, 1932 by other creditors. The real estate was sold by the sheriff and the fund realized was ordered distributed to the three judgment creditors who obtained their judgments on June 21, 1932 in preference to the judgment of the bank's assignee. The Supreme Court, after pointing out that the lien of the original judgment against the land in the ownership of the terre-tenant, was not affected by the scire facias issued against the judgment debtor on May 12, 1932, continued as follows: "We construed in [Farmers NationalBank Trust Co. v. Barrett]
"When the first scire facias was issued on May 12, 1932, without joining the terre-tenant . . . . . . the writ was ineffective to continue the lien of appellant's judgment against the terre-tenant's land. . . . . .
"But the lien of the original judgment was not lost by that proceeding. It continued until November 18, 1932 [five years from the date of recording the deed]. In Fursht v. Overdeer, 3 W. S. 470, it was held that the fact that the judgment creditor issued a scire facias *397 to revive a judgment without joining a terre-tenant did not result in merging and thereby extinguishing the lien existing by virtue of the original judgment. Within the time limit set by statute that lien continues unimpaired and in full force no matter how many writs of scire facias may be issued thereon without joining the terre-tenant: See also Farmers National Bank Trust Company [v. Barrett], supra.
"In this situation, with the original judgment still a lien upon the land, the judgment entered on June 21, 1932, being of no effect, appellant's course was clear. It was to revive the only judgment which was a lien upon the land — the original judgment.Little v. Smyser,
In other words, the latest decisions of the Supreme Court, in construing the Acts of 1849 and 1887, supra, announce as settled rules of property: (1) That the conveyance of land by a judgmentdebtor subject to the judgment, by deed recorded within five years *398 of the entry of the judgment, of itself, has the effect of continuing the lien of the judgment against the land conveyed to the terre-tenant for a period of five years, to be computed from the date the terre-tenant recorded his deed or actually entered into possession of the land; just as by the Act of June 7, 1917, P.L. 447, sec. 15(g) — re-enacting the Act of May 3, 1909, P.L. 386, as amended by the Act of May 14, 1915, P.L. 475 — the death of a judgment debtor whose land was bound by the lien of the judgment on the date of his death, has the effect of continuing the lien for the term of five years from the date of his death against the land in the hands of the heirs and devisees, without issuing a scire facias against, or obtaining an amicable agreement of revival from, his legal representatives; and (2) that if a writ of scire facias has been sued out against the judgment debtor, without bringing in the terre-tenant whose deed has been recorded, the issuance of such writ and the entry of judgment thereon have no effect whatever on the lien of the judgment on the land of the terre-tenant, and the judgment creditor still has five years from the recording of the terre-tenant's deed within which to sue out an alias writ of scire facias on the original judgment, — not on the judgment on the first scire facias to which the terre-tenant was not a party — and bring in the terre-tenant, naming him as such, and proceed to judgment against him.
While not necessary, it may not be out of place to make a brief analysis of the statutes concerned in these decisions.
The Act of April 4, 1798, 3 Sm. L. 331, provided that no judgment thereafter entered should continue a lien on the real estate of the person against whom it was entered for a longer term than five years, unless the person who obtained such judgment, within the term of five years, sued out of the court where the *399 judgment was entered a writ of scire facias to revive the same.
The Supreme Court in construing this Act held (Young v. Taylor Barron, 2 Binney 217) that if the lands of the defendant were aliened by him before execution issued on the judgment, the plaintiff was not obliged to take out a scire facias against the terre-tenant before he could have execution against the lands in the terre-tenant's possession; and that an execution within a year and a day continued the lien of the judgment without resorting to a writ of scire facias under the Act of 1798.
To get around this decision, inter alia, the Act of March 26, 1827, 9 Sm. L. 303, was passed as a supplement to the Act of 1798, supra. It provided that all judgments entered in any court of record, or revived in the manner prescribed, should continue a lien on the real estate of the defendant for the term of five years from the day of entry or revival thereof; and that no judgment should continue a lien on such real estate for a longer period than five years, unless revived within that period by agreement of the parties and terre-tenants, filed in writing and entered on the proper docket, or a writ of scire facias to revive the same was sued out within said period, notwithstanding an execution might be issued within a year and a day from the rendering of such judgment.
It was held by the Supreme Court in Armstrong's Appeal, 5 W. S. 352 (1843), as a consequence of this Act, that the revival of a judgment by agreement to which a terre-tenant was not a party, would not continue the lien as to him, even though the deed by which he became terre-tenant was not recorded.
The injurious and unjust consequences to judgment creditors resulting from the Act of 1827, so construed (Wetmore v. Wetmore,
By the Act of June 1, 1887, P.L. 289, the supplemental Act of March 26, 1827, was amended by adding to it the following provision: "and no proceeding shall be available to continue the lien of said judgment against a terre-tenant, whose deed for the land bound by said judgment has been recorded, except by agreement, in writing, signed by said terre-tenant, and entered on the proper lien docket, or the terre-tenant, or terre-tenants be named as such in the original scire facias."
There was considerable uncertainty among judges and lawyers as to the effect of the Act of 1887 on the Act of 1849. This court held in Uhler v. Moses,
In that case Uhler recovered a judgment in Dauphin County against William S. Moses and William Cunningham on October 6, 1882, which became a lien on a lot of ground in Harrisburg owned by Cunningham. On June 26, 1895 Cunningham conveyed the lot to his wife, by deed recorded November 13, 1895. On October 6, 1897 a scire facias was issued to revive the judgment against the original defendants, without notice to Mrs. *401 Cunningham, which was duly served and judgment entered against them.
On December 7, 1897 an alias scire facias was issued on the judgment and in this writ Mrs. Cunningham was named as terre-tenant. She filed an affidavit of defense averring that the judgment had ceased to be a lien upon the property conveyed to her before this alias issued and therefore judgment should not be entered against her land; and the court below refused to enter judgment against her, as terre-tenant, for want of a sufficient affidavit of defense. On April 13, 1898 the plaintiff issued a writ of fieri facias on the original judgment, with notice to Alda P. Cunningham, terre-tenant, and levy was made on the land conveyed to her. Mrs. Cunningham then presented her petition asking that said writ of execution be stayed as far as her lot of ground was affected, and after answer filed and argument this was done by the lower court and affirmed by the Superior Court, on the ground that the Act of 1887 had repealed the Act of 1849. In the opinion of the Supreme Court, filed by Mr. Justice DEAN, it was expressly ruled that the Act of 1849 was not repealed; that it remained in full force and effect and that its effect on a judgment which was a valid lien against land aliened by the judgment debtor, was to continue the lien of the judgment for five years from the date the terre-tenant's deed was recorded. The facts were practically identical with those in Farmers Bank Trust Co. v. Barrett, supra, and warranted the following statement by Chief Justice KEPHART in that case, p. 275: "InUhler v. Moses,
This was in substantial accord with the prior statement of the court in Lyon to use v. Cleveland,
In Kefover v. Hustead et al.,
These are the statutes and decisions mainly relied upon by the Supreme Court in announcing its settled rules of property as stated in
If it be asked, what significance is to be given then to the opening phrase in section 8 of the Act of 1849 reading, "That in all cases when a judgment has been or shall be regularly revived between the original parties," *405
the answer is not difficult. It applies to cases where the terre-tenant did not record his deed or enter into actual possession of the land within five years of the entry of the judgment. In such event, in order to preserve the lien as to possible terre-tenants — as respects the original judgmentdebtor, himself, see McCahan v. Elliott,
Judge LADNER in the second edition (1941) of his valuable work on `Conveyancing in Pennsylvania', chapter XII, on `Searches', after a very comprehensive discussion of the whole subject (pp. 443-448), interprets the decisions of the Supreme Court which we have cited above — with special reference to Farmers NationalBank Trust Co. to use, c. v. Barrett,
"II. — Where the judgment has been entered, or duly revived by sci. fa., within five years prior to the recording of the deedfrom the judgment debtor, the lien of the judgment is kept alive as against the grantee, as against the terre-tenant and any subsequent grantee of his, for a further period of five years from the date of *406 such recording, without any sci. fa. being issued during the five years from the entry of the judgment, or from the issuance of the previous sci. fa. (Italics supplied).
"III. — In such case, the issuance, after the recording of the deed, of a sci. fa. against the judgment debtor alone, with or without judgment thereon, is wholly ineffective in reviving the lien of the original judgment, or in creating a new lien, against the terre-tenant.
"IV. — The lien of the original judgment being still in existence for five years from the recording of the said deed, the land can be sold on execution under that lien, at any time during the five year period, without the issuance of any sci. fa. at all; either against the judgment debtor or the terre-tenant.
"V. — Under such circumstances, in order to continue the lien of the judgment beyond the five years following the recording of the deed, a sci. fa. on the original judgment (being the judgment which was still a lien when the judgment debtor made his deed) must issue within that period, bringing in the terre-tenant."
The facts in the present case bring it within Judge LADNER'S rules, as above, for the judgment was entered less than fiveyears before the deed under which the appellee claims was recorded, on May 16, 1935, and hence the judgment was kept alive as against her for a further period of five years from the date of such recording without the issuance of any sci. fa.; and the subsequent issuance, within five years of the recording of her deed, of a sci. fa. on the original judgment, bringing in the appellee as terre-tenant constituted a revival of the judgment as respects the land so conveyed to the terre-tenant and warranted a writ of execution against it to satisfy the judgment.
The assignments of error are sustained. The judgment is reversed and the record is remitted to the court below with directions to enter a judgment in favor of the plaintiff and against the terre-tenant for the amount of the judgment with interest.
Dissenting Opinion
The facts and the history of the pertinent legislation and decisions are amply set forth in the opinion of the President Judge. But I am unable to agree with the construction of the Act of 1849 adopted by the majority. I think that construction disregards the phrase, "when a judgment has been or shall be regularly revived between the original parties," and that the decisions relied upon do not compel the conclusion reached.
Under the Act of 1827, a revival of the judgment against the original debtor alone within the five-year period availed nothing as against the terre-tenant even though the deed to the terre-tenant was unrecorded. Armstrong's Appeal, 5 W. S. 352 (1843). This furnished an opportunity to a conniving debtor to defeat the lien of the judgment irrespective of how diligent the creditor might be.
The intention of the Act of 1849 was to put an end to "that juggling with the title by the judgment debtor and terre-tenant which had grown up under the act of 1827." Uhler v. Moses,
The majority of the court construes this Act to mean that the lien of the judgment is automatically revived for a further period of five years by recording the deed of the debtor to the terre-tenant. This construction obviously goes much further than giving to the diligent *408 creditor relief from the hardship which ensued from the Act of 1827. It gives the Act the effect of creating a new and additional method of reviving a judgment between the original parties. I think "regularly revived" means regularly revived in accordance with then existing law.
In Farmers National Bank Trust Co. of Reading, to use, v.Barrett et al.,
Thus in all of the cases mentioned in the above paragraph the judgment was regularly revived between the original parties by sci. fa. or by amicable agreement within the five-year period. The language used in these cases and quoted in the majority opinion, therefore, when viewed in the light of the factual situation involved, does not support the majority's interpretation. *409
Kefover et al. v. Hustead et al.,
It is significant to contrast the language of the Act of 1849 that "when a judgment has been or shall be regularly revived between the original parties," with the language of the Fiduciaries Act of 1917, which provides an automatic revival by death, that "although such judgments be not revived by scire facias or otherwise after his [the debtor's] death." I think this difference was deliberate and intended. The revival of a judgment against a dead debtor presents a number of difficulties for the creditor which do not exist in the revival of a judgment against one who is alive. Considerable periods of time frequently elapse between the death of the debtor and the grant of letters to his personal representative. Frequently, no letters are issued until and unless a creditor makes the move, and problems are often encountered in ascertaining who the terre-tenant or tenants are.
I would affirm the judgment.
RHODES, J., joins in this dissent.