Hodges v. McDuff

43 N.W. 428, 76 Mich. 303, 1889 Mich. LEXIS 952
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 11, 1889
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 43 N.W. 428 (Hodges v. McDuff) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hodges v. McDuff, 43 N.W. 428, 76 Mich. 303, 1889 Mich. LEXIS 952 (Mich. 1889).

Opinion

Morse, J.

The substance of the bill and answers in this ease will be found stated in Hodges v. McDuff, 69 Mich. 76 (36 N. W. Rep. 704).

After the filing of the opinion reported as above, and on the fifth day of May, 1888, the following decree was entered in the circuit court for the county of Wayne, in chancery:

This cause came on to be heard on pleadings and proofs taken in open court, and the court having heard Edwin F. Conely, solicitor for the complainant, and Henry M. Oheever, solicitor for the defendants, it is ordered, adjudged, and decreed, and this court, by virtue of the power in it vested, doth order, adjudge, and decree, as follows:
" 1. That the said defendants have fully accounted for all the property, and all of their doings in and about the property, described in the bill of complaint in this cause, and in and about the trust created by and vested in them by virtue of the deed of the said Andrew McDuff to the said defendants, mentioned and set forth in the said bill of complaint.
“2, That the said defendants, Gilbert G. McDuff and Alexander O. McEedries, being desirous of resigning their trust, and conveying the property to the guardian, do forthwith, by a proper deed of quitclaim and release, convey and transfer to the complainant, as guardian as aforesaid, the premises described and set forth in the bill of complaint herein, and all the right, title, interest, power, and authority of the defendants under and by virtue of the trust-deed aforesaid.
“3. That the matter of the compensation of the said defendants, or either of them, for services rendered in the matter of the trust created by the deed aforesaid, be, and the same is hereby, reserved for further investigation and determination.
<£'4. That reasonable counsel fees for services rendered by Henry M. Oheever, the solicitor for the defendants, in the matter of said trusts,' to be fixed by the court, shall be allowed and paid out of the property covered by said trust, as soon as practicable and reasonable after the date of this decree.”

On the fourth day of June, 1888, the petition of the [305]*305defendant Gilbert G. McDuff was filed for a rehearing or re-opening of the case.

The petition set forth, among other,things, that the said defendant’s solicitor, Henry M. Cheever, by misrepresentations of what the court would hold the law to be, and what the complainant promised to do, unduly persuaded the said defendant to consent to the decree entered May 5, 1888; that he was entitled to a decree exonerating him entirely, and allowing him to retain his trust as set forth in the trust-deed from his father to him, but was unduly persuaded by the misrepresentations of his said solicitor to consent to a differ ent one; that the decree entered was substantially different from the one drafted by said Cheever and shown to him, and to which he consented; that in the decree he consented to he was to have the care and custody of his father, the said Andrew McDuff, if his father so desired it, at the expense and costs of his said estate and property, or the said trust property; that said Henry O. Hodges would immediately resign his trust as guardian of said Andrew McDuff, and another guardian be appointed by agreement of those interested in his father’s estate, or by the court, if agreement could not be reached; that the defendants should be allowed compensation for the eight years they had acted as trustees for said estate, and that they should have an opportunity to prove what was the value of their services as such trustees.

“ That it was the express wish of the said Andrew McDuff that his son, Gilbert G. McDuff, should have the care and control and management of his said property as aforesaid;. he should be allowed to continue the control and management thereof, so long as he does so in an honest, intelligent,, and business-like manner, which, if he has not already proven to this court he has done, he oan readily do so, and is anxious, and desirous of doing so.
That the appointment of a stranger to the care and' custody of the said Andrew McDuff and his property would not be to the best interest of the said trust-estate; that your petitioner is ready and willing to execute a bond for the [306]*306faithful performance of the trust imposed in him, if the court .so desires it.
“ That through the inattention of your petitioner’s said solicitor, or some misunderstanding, your petitioner was not allowed to prove the actual services rendered the said estate, and value thereof; that your petitioner ought to be allowed the privilege of showing to the court just what services he has rendered the said estate, and the value thereof, by the said trustees.
“That by a supplemental decree in this cause your petitioner was allowed but $100 for his services, and this, too, without your petitioner being allowed to put in proof of what his services actually were, by reason of some misunderstanding or inattention on the part of his solicitor, which your petitioner represents as wholly inadequate and unjust to your petitioner.
“ That the said decree has been settled and entered,but has not yet been enrolled.”

This petition was supported by the affidavits of John E. Morrissey and Benjamin F. Stamm, and was contested and disputed by the affidavits of Edwin F. Conely, solicitor for the complainant, and Henry M. Cheever, solicitor for the defendants.

Mr. Cheever- deposes that, so far as the principal decree is concerned, he believes that Gilbert G. McDuff was perfectly satisfied with it, and fully understood it; that he made no objection to it to him; and said Cheever further denies that he made any misrepresentations of law or of fact to said Gilbert G. McDuff, or of any matter or thing connected with said litigation in any way. Mr. Cheever further says:

Deponent denies that he ever drafted a decree, or showed it to petitioner, as he has alleged. The petitioner has mistaken the draft of a ‘memorandum of a settlement’ (which the deponent made and submitted to petitioner) for a decree. This memorandum embraced other matters, which were discussed between the counsel, but which were not proper to be incorporated in the decree itself. This paper was headed, * Mem. of Proposed Settlement.’ It provides that petitioner should be briefly examined on the stand, further, so as to explain a few items of his testimony. These items referred [307]*307■to two months when the books showed that he had received more money from the estate than he had expended, and concerning which he had testified that he must have used it. He was thus permitted to testify before the decree was entered.
“ It also provided that the complainant would rest his •case, ánd that the defendant should examine three or four witnesses as to the question whether McDufE had carefully attended to his father and the estate, and done the best he •could in his trusteeship. This testimony was introduced •before the decree was entered.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
43 N.W. 428, 76 Mich. 303, 1889 Mich. LEXIS 952, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hodges-v-mcduff-mich-1889.