Dousman v. Hooe

3 Wis. 466
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedJune 15, 1854
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 3 Wis. 466 (Dousman v. Hooe) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dousman v. Hooe, 3 Wis. 466 (Wis. 1854).

Opinion

By the Oourt,

Smith, J.

This is an appeal from an order of the Circuit Court of Crawford county in equity, after final decree, upon the petition of the defendant Emilie Ilooe for a re-hearing, granting leave to file a supplemental bill in the nature of a bill of review, &c.

The order made in this case must be reversed. This was a petition for a rehearing, and upon such a petition the circuit judge made an order granting the defendants leave to file a supplemental bill in the nature of a bill of review. Whether or not such an order could be made upon a petition for rehearsing merely, this petition does not authorize it. A supplemental bill in the nature of a bill of review, can only be filed to bring in new matter, discovered since publication in the original cause, where the decree has not been enrolled. Story's Eq, Pl. § 425, 426. The facts newly discovered must be material and pertinent, and must be set out- in the petition, so that [493]*493the court may judge of their materiality, and perti-nency. But the petition in this case does not state any newly discovered evidence upon which it is based-All the causes or reasons which it presents, are for alleged errors appearing on the face of the record.

A supplemental bill in the nature of a bill of -review can only be filed before enrollment of the decree, and the petition should state whether the decree has been enrolled or not. Story's Eq. Pl. 325, et. seq.

After a decree has been enrolled, it can only .be modified .of reversed upon a bill of review, and a supplemental bill in the nature of a bill of review, or a bill in the nature of a bill of review cannot be permitted.

All of these bills can only be filed on leave of court for that purpose granted.

For these reasons, it is apparent, that the order made in this case, is not in conformity with the practice in a court of equity, and cannot be sustained.— But as we understood the parties to desire the opinion and decision of this court upon the right of the defendant Emilie Hooe, to a rehearing in any mode, or by any proceeding, and as the case was argued with that view, we have proceeded to consider that question upon the merits, as set forth in the petition.

The petition is based upon errors apparent upon the face of the decree, and the first error assigned, is:

“It does not appear in, and by said decretal order, that the said District Court considered any particular thing proved, upon which said decree is founded, nor doth said decree set forth any fact upon which the same is based.”

[494]*494It is not the practice in many of the states, to set in the decree the matters proved on which the (jecree nor to recite the pleadings and pro of. jg p. practice of the courts of the United States. Story's Eq. Pl. 321. Dexter vs. Arnold 5 Mason 303. Whiting vs. Bank U. S. And this practice is now sanctioned by express rule. The pleadings and proofs are now considered matters of record, and the necessity for such recitals in the decree no longer exists, and therefore are of no practical utility.

The next objection is, “It appears on the face of the decree, that some of the defendants named in said bill, viz: Joseph Rolette, Jr., John H. Manahan, and Jean F. Rolette, are not parties to, or named in said decree.”

The decree is very brief. None of the defendants in the suit are particularly named in it, but the decree vests the title to lot 3 in the complainant, and then proceeds to declare “the defendants” to be “forever barred <fec. Talcing the decree as only part of the record, of which the pleadings, and other proceedings also help to make up a part, the term “defendants” in the decree must be held to comprise all those who are made parties as such to the suit, and as the persons named in the assignment of errors are thus made parties, we think the objection un tenable. •

To the third error assigned, to-wit, that the prayer of the complainant for an amount of the rents, &c., is not passed upon, it is sufficient to say, that, if the complainant waives it, the defendant is not injured thereby, an$ it is no gro und of error.

The fourth error assigned is in these words, “It is ap[495]*495parent upon the face of the said decree, that Hercules L. Dousman is named as one of the complainants in said cause, whereas by the record of said cause it no where appears that the said Hercules L. Dousman was one of the complainants, but that he appears to be named in said decree by reason of his intermarriage with the said Jane, whereas by the law of the land the said Hercules L. could only have been made a co-plaintiff by bill, subsequent to the said bill, and subsequent to the said marriage.”

It appears from the papers returned here as the record in this cause, that at the time of the com-mencemet thereof, the complainant Jane F. Rolette, was a femme sole, and, that during the pendency thereof, she intermarried with the said Hercules L: Dousman.

The suit was commenced at or before the April Term of the court, A. D. 1843. At the May term, A. D. 1854, on the 5th day thereof, there is the following entry of record:

“This day came the complainant by her solicitor, and gave the court here, to understand and be informed, that since the last term of this court she has intermarried with Hercules L. Dousman. And thereupon the said Hercules L. Dousman, the husband of the said complainant by his solicitor, moves the court to be admitted as a party to prosecute this suit with his wife, the said complainant, in like manner as if he had originally joined in the said suit, which motion is continued for argument.”

And it further appears from the record, that on the next day, to-wit on the 6th day of said term of May 1845, the following entry was made: “And now comes the said defendants by their solicitors, and give [496]*496the court, here to understand, that since the last term of this court the said Jane F. Rolette, who was the gQ|e compiaxnant in this suit, has intermarried with one Hercules L. Dousman, and by the laws of the land regulating proceeding in chancery, the said suit was abated. The said defendants now move the court for a rule on the said plaintiff to file a bill of revivor, to revive the said suit, in the name of the said Hercules L. Dousman and Jane F. his wife as par - ty plaintiff by the day of next, or in default thereof, that the said suit may be dismissed.”

Argument was heard upon these motions, and the same were continued under advisement until the 9th day of the said term of May, 1845, when the following entry was made:

“ This day come the parties aforesaid, by their solicitors, and it is ordered by the court, that' the motion of Hercules L. Dousman, the husband of the said complainant, heretofore made herein, to be admitted as a party to prosecute this suit, be sustained ; and it is ordered by the court that the said Hercules L. Dousman be admitted as a party to prosecute the said suit, with the said complaiuant, in like manner as if he had originally joined in the suit,” <fcc.

It must be acknowledged, certainly, that this is a novel mode of reviving a suit in chancery. But it is probable that the party and the court construed the statute for the revival of suits at law, to extendió the practice in equity.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Finlayson v. Lipscomb
15 Fla. 558 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1876)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
3 Wis. 466, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dousman-v-hooe-wis-1854.