180 Mo. 616 | Mo. | 1904
This is a bill in equity to set aside a deed dated March 28, 1898, from the defendant. John M. Henderson, to his mother, the defendant Sarah L. Henderson, to his undivided one-sixth interest in a certain four hundred and eighty acre tract of land in Bates county, of which his father, Eli Henderson, died seized on March 11, 1898, on the ground that it was a voluntary conveyance, without consideration and made for the purpose of defrauding his, John M. Henderson’s, creditors, and especially the plaintiff, to whom he was at the time indebted in the sum of five hundred dollars, and which has since been reduced to judgment, and said John M. Henderson’s interest in the land sold under execution to the plaintiff. The answers are gen
“That on the 8th day of February, 1898, the defendant, John M. Henderson, became indebted to the plaintiff, James L. Trabue, in the sum of $500, bearing interest at the rate of 8 per cent annually, said debt becoming due in September, 1898, by an assumption in a deed to him that Eli Henderson, who was the father of said John M. Henderson, died intestate March 11, 1898, seized of in fee, the following property, to-wit: The south half of section twenty-eight, township forty-two and range thirty-three, containing 320 acres; the northwest quarter -of the northwest quarter and the north half of the northeast quarter of section thirty-three, township forty-two, range thirty-three, containing 120 acres; and the southeast quarter of the southwest quarter of section twenty-nine, township forty-two, range thirty-three, containing 40 acres, or 480 acres in all, in Bates county, Missouri; that the said Eli Henderson left as his heirs, his widow, the defendant Sarah L. Henderson, and six children, as follows: John M. Henderson, the defendant, Martha A. Ankrum, Elan, Asenath O., Lois Belle and Laura A. Hendrson, all of whom were on said date of age. That on the 24th day of March, 1898, the heirs above-named, except Asenath, .joined in and executed and acknowledged a power of attorney to said Asenath O., creating her their attorney in fact to manage the estate of their father, for them, and pay all the debts he owed. That on the 28th day of March, 1898, all the said children of Eli Henderson joined in a quitclaim deed which they duly executed, acknowledged and delivered, conveying all of their interest in and to said property to their mother, the defendant Sarah L. Henderson, for an expressed cash -consideration of two thousand dollars, and the assump
“Wherefore, the court-finds that at the time of the death of the father, John M. Henderson was largely indebted to his father by reason of debts paid by the mother from the assets of the estate, including borrowed money, as well as from her means, and that the deed was made by him to his mother on account of said indebtedness, so satisfied and to be satisfied. In other words, that his said debts so paid were fairly equal to the value of his interest in the estate; that this was a good, fair and sufficient consideration on his part for the deed to his mother.
“Wherefore, it is by the court ordered, adjudged and decreed, that plaintiff can recover nothing in this action, that defendants go hence without day, and that they recover of plaintiff their costs in this behalf expended, and that execution issue therefor. ’ ’
After proper steps the plaintiff appealed. The facts necessary to a determination of the case will be stated in the course of the opinion.
The principal contention of the plaintiff is that if Eli Henderson took the cattle and assumed the debt due thereon, there was no further liability of John M. Henderson therefor, and hence there was no consideration for the deed from John M. Henderson to his mother, and it is therefore voluntary, without consideration and fraudulent as to existing creditors, and that Mrs. Henderson’s innocence of fraud is immaterial.
The difficulty standing in the plaintiff’s path is, however, that his first postulate is not well founded.
It will be observed that Eli Henderson did not assume John’s indebtedness, nor was it partnership indebtedness. Eli was indorser on John’s notes for the money to pay for feed, and was interested in this way in seeing that the cattle brought as much as possible, but there is no evidence that Eli assumed John’s indebtedness to the Commission Company.
About the time specified Eli shipped two hundred of the cattle to Kansas City and they were sold by the Commission Company, and realized $5,699.67. This left
On the 28th of March, 1898, all the children joined in a quitclaim deed to the land to their mother, and as a part of the same transaction the mother and all the children joined in a power of attorney to Miss Asenath O. Henderson, one of the heirs, authorizing her to manage the property and pay of£ the debts. This was done to avoid the expense of an administration. After four years of most excellent management, out of the rents, issues and profits of the four hundred and eighty acres and of.her mother’s eighty acres, which was used for the same purpose, and out of the profits made by her while handling the matter, and out of the assets of the estate, she paid off all of the debts of the estate, including the four thousand dollars security debt which Eli owed for John, and including what was still due the Commission Company by John, and including the notes
Turn the picture around and loot at it from the other side and this is what it shows: When Eli Henderson died, his estate was worth about twelve thousand dollars, and he owed over ten thousand dollars, of which about four thousand was as surety for John. Even if he had owed nothing John’s share would have amounted to about two thousand dollars, and as he owed his father or his estate about four thousand dollars, his share of the estate would have been applied by the administrator to pay what he owed the estate and he would still have owed the estate about two thousand dollars. [Leitman v. Leitman, 149 Mo. 112.]
Therefore, if there had been an administration on the estate and no conveyance by John of his interest in the land, there would have been nothing coming to John out of the estate which the plaintiff could apply to his debt. Clearly, therefore, if the ordinary course of winding up an estate had been followed, John would have gotten nothing from his father’s estate and therefore the plaintiff would have gotten nothing.
The position of the plaintiff, therefore, resolves itself into this, that it was fraudulent for the parties to do an act which if it had been done according to the usual method of doing it through the probate court, would have been legal, and would have resulted in exactly the same thing so far as the plaintiff is con
It must be remembered, however, that the petition is based upon a charge that the conveyance from John to his mother was voluntary, without consideration and fraudulent, and in this light it must be adjudged. It is not a petition charging that the deed was a conveyance in trust to secure John’s creditors, and ashing an accounting from the trustee.
It is manifest that there was no fraud intended or perpetrated by the deed. As pointed out, it withdrew nothing from John’s creditors that they could have seized. It only accomplished out of court a result that would necessarily have followed in court if the estate had been regularly administered upon. The learned trial judge, therefore, properly held that there was no fraud in the conveyance, and that John’s inheritance had been properly applied to the payment of John’s indebtedness to the estate.
There are other minor points urged, but the judgment is manifestly for the right party, and as the case is one in equity, mere errors, if they be errors, in reaching a right conclusion are not sufficient to justify a . reversal of the judgment. The judgment of the circuit court is affirmed.