Dunbar v. Bourland

114 S.W. 467, 88 Ark. 153, 1908 Ark. LEXIS 178
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedNovember 23, 1908
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 114 S.W. 467 (Dunbar v. Bourland) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dunbar v. Bourland, 114 S.W. 467, 88 Ark. 153, 1908 Ark. LEXIS 178 (Ark. 1908).

Opinion

Hirr, C. J.,

(after stating the facts). W. T. Dunbar filed a suit for partition in Crawford Circuit Court against E. C. Dunbar, seeking a partition of a farm owned jointly by them known as the “Sharp Earm.” E- C. Dunbar answered, and asked a transfer to the chancery court. The transfer was denied, and he excepted, and the cause was continued for the term. Thereafter, and before the next term of the circuit court, E. C. Dunbar filed suit in the Crawford Chancery Court against W. T. Dunbar, alleging that they had purchased the Sharp Earm in co-partnership, and thereafter conducted a farming partnership, which he asked to be dissolved, their accounts settled, and the land partitioned, and set forth the pendency in the circuit court of the action therein brought against him by the defendant in this suit, but asserted that he was entitled to have a court of equity settle and adjust their accounts. The defendant aptly objected to the jurisdiction of the chancery court, but that court entertained it, and the defendant has, after due notice, applied here for a writ of prohibition to the chancery count, and its chancellor. The facts are stated in detail in the preceding statement.

The circuit courts, and the chancery courts have concurrent jurisdiction for the partition of real estate. The statutory remedy of partition is cumulative to the equitable remedy, and either may be pursued. Patton v. Wagner, 19 Ark. 233; Moore v. Willey, 77 Ark. 317; Lester v. Kirtley, 83 Ark. 554.

While these remedies are concurrent, it must not be understood that concurrent remedies may be pursued concurrently. Mr. Works says: “Where two or more courts have concurrent jurisdiction, t’he one which first takes cognizance of a cause has-the exclusive right to entertain and exercise such jurisdiction, to the final determination of the action and the enforcement of its judgment or decree.” Works on Courts and their Jurisdiction,, sec. 17.

Mr. Bailey says: “In the distribution of powers among courts it frequently happens that jurisdiction of the same subject-matter is given to different courts. Conflict and confusion would inevitably result unless some rule was adopted to prevent or avoid it. -Therefore it has been wisely and uniformly determined that whichever court, of those having jurisdiction, first obtains jurisdiction, or, as is sometimes said, possession of the cause, will retain throughout, to the exclusion of another; and this jurisdiction extends to the execution of the judgment.” 1 Bailey on Jurisdiction, § 77.

The Supreme Court of the United States says that this prop'osition is firmly established. “When a State court and a court of the United States may each take jurisdiction of a matter, the. tribunal where jurisdiction first attaches holds it, to the exclusion of the other, until its duty is fully performed, and the jurisdiction involved is exhausted; and this rule applies alike in both civil and criminal cases.” Harkrader v. Wadley, 172 U. S. 148.

Judge Thayer, speaking for the Circuit Court of Appeals of this circuit, thus expresses it: “The doctrine is well settled that when a court, in the progress of a suit properly pending before it, takes possession of property, either under a writ of replevin or attachment, or by other mesne or final process, or by the appointment of a receiver or assignee, its jurisdiction over the property for the time being becomes exclusive, and no other court can lawfully interfere with the possession so acquired. While property is so held, it cannot be sold under the judgment,, sentence, or decree of any other tribunal. Moreover, so long as the property remains in custodia legis, no other court, unless by special leave of the court which first acquired jurisdiction, can lawfully proceed with the trial and determination of a suit, the object of which is to establish a lien against the property, or to subject the specific .property to the payment of debts, or which may result in creating conflicting rights or titles thereto. The possession of the res vests the court which has first acquired jurisdiction with the power to hear and determine all controversies relating thereto, and for the time being disables other courts of co-ordinate jurisdiction from exercising a like power. This rule is essential to the orderly administration of justice, and to prevent unseemly conflicts between courts whose jurisdiction embraces the same subjects and persons.” Merritt v. American Steel-Barge Co., 79 Fed. 228.

The only difference between the suit in the circuit court and the suit in the chancery court is that in the latter court the complaint alleges that the lands were purchased in partnership, and that the plaintiff and defendant thereafter owned and operated the same in partnership. In each suit a partition of the lands is prayed. Other than asking for a dissolution of the farming co-partnership between them, the relief asked in the chancery court is the same as that asked in the answer in the circuit court, with the addition in the chancery court that the excess in plaintiff’s favor on the accounting be declared a lien upon the property. In other respects the relief sought by both parties in each court is identical — the partition of the real estate and the adjustment of their respective rights growing out of a settlement of their joint ownership of the Sharp Farm.

In the circuit court the defendant set forth facts which he alleged entitled him to transfer the case to the chancery court. The circuit court overruled his motion to transfer. Whether that court erred in overruling it is not the question here. It had jurisdiction to rule upon that motion, and had jurisdiction of the parties and of the subject-matter of the suit; and if it erred in refusing to transfer the cause to the chancery court, that error can be corrected in this court on appeal, and not otherwise.

If the allegations of the purchase in partnership of the property and the farming partnership thereafter are true and are material to F. C. Dunbar’s rights, they should have been made in the answer in the circuit court and the lien sought therein prayed. Section 6098 of Kirby’s Digest says that “the defendant may set forth in his answer as many grounds of defense, counterclaim and setoff, whether legal or equitable, as he shall ■have.” In construing that section, this court said: “They had no right to bring a separate action in chancery to obtain relief they might have had in the original suit by making full defense, or preparing to do so, in their application to set aside the judgments.” Ward v. Derrick, 57 Ark. 500.

' In Daniel v. Garner, 71 Ark. 484, it was said: “Under the statutes of this State a defendant, when sued at law, must make all the defenses he has, both legal and equitable. If any of his defenses are exclusively cognizable in equity, he is entitled to have them tried as an equitable proceedings, and for this purpose to a transfer of the cause to the equity docket or chancery court, as the case may be.” To the same effect see Church v. Gallic, 76 Ark. 423, and authorities there cited. The Code does not tolerate ■ a partial defense in one court, reserving other defenses to be asserted in another court, in event of failure in the first court. All defenses must be interposed, and then the cause will be tried in the appropriate court. If not interposed, they are waived, and cannot be made the subject-matter of an equitable action.

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Bluebook (online)
114 S.W. 467, 88 Ark. 153, 1908 Ark. LEXIS 178, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dunbar-v-bourland-ark-1908.