Kies v. Brown

268 N.W. 910, 222 Iowa 54
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedSeptember 22, 1936
DocketNo. 43257.
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 268 N.W. 910 (Kies v. Brown) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kies v. Brown, 268 N.W. 910, 222 Iowa 54 (iowa 1936).

Opinion

Stiger, J.

This is a suit-by the guardian of Anna Kies, appointed September 6, 1932, against IT. F. Brown, surety on the guardian’s bond of C. M.'Herrig, former guardian, who died May 5, 1924, for breach of the bond by the principal.

■ Plaintiff alleges that C. M. Herrig was appointed guardian of Anna Kies in April, 1920; that at the time of the death of said guardian he had in his hands the sum of $1,760, belonging to-his ward which has never been accounted for by the guardian or his executrix.

Plaintiff further states that said guardian did not exercise reasonable diligence in the care and preservation and lawful disposal of all money appertaining to his office and that said money has-not been turned over to the plaintiff, successor to said guardian, and that under the terms of said bond the sureties thereon are liable for such money coming into the hands of the guardian; that said guardian deposited the funds in a bank in which he was employed in Wall Lake, Iowa, and that in making said deposit the guardian C. M. Herrig was guilty of negligence.

Mr. Herrig gave the statutory bond required by Code section 12577.

" No service of notice was obtained on defendant, William Claussen. . . ' -

*56 A jury was waived and trial had to the court.

The trial court after reviewing the evidence made the following finding:

‘ ‘ The court finds that after the demise of the said guardian, C. M. Herrig, neither one of the sureties on the bond of said guardian made any attempt to have a guardian appointed to succeed the former deceased guardian, C. M. Herrig. That the depositing of said guardianship funds in the said Farmers State Bank after the death (Italics ours) of the former guardian, C. M. Herrig, on time certificates of deposit bearing interest and the renewing of same each year was all done without authority of the court and was therefore wrongful and that all such wrongful acts were all made possible because the sureties on the bond of the said former guardian, C. M. Herrig, at no time made any application for the appointment of a guardian to succeed the former deceased guardian, C. M. Herrig, and at no time made any move to safeguard the funds belonging to said guardianship, and therefore said sureties remained liable for the funds belonging to said guardianship.”

On October 2, 1934, a judgment was entered on the findings of the court against defendant, H. F. Brown as surety on the guardian’s bond, in the sum of $2,002.73, from which judgment the defendant appeals.

The history of this guardianship is as follows: In April, 1920, C. M. Herrig, cashier of the Farmers State Bank, Wall Lake, Iowa, was appointed and qualified as guardian of Anna Kies, a minor eight years old’. The property of the ward consisted of $1,760, which the guardian deposited in said bank. Whether or not this deposit was authorized by a court order is not disclosed.

On April 30, 1923, the guardian filed a report showing the sum of $1,760 in his possession belonging to his said ward and on deposit in said bank.

The ward was in the custody of her father, Reinhold Kies, and Mr. Herrig as guardian paid the interest on the fund to the father for the care and education of his daughter.

Mr. Herrig died on May 5, 1924, at which time the guardianship. property consisted of a certificate of deposit for $1,760 in the said Wall Lake Bank. His wife, Luella Herrig, was appointed executrix of his will, duly qualified, and said estate has *57 not been closed. The estate was solvent until about the year 1930.

After the death of Mr. Herrig the certificate of deposit was cashed by Reinhold Kies, father of the ward, who secured a new certificate of deposit payable to the guardian of Anna Kies in the sum of $1,760, which was renewed each year by Mr. Kies, until' the bank closed in August 1932. During all of this time the interest on the certificates was paid to Kies who used it for the care and education of his daughter, Anna.

Until May 1930, the certificates were kept in a safety deposit box in the bank which was in the name of Anna Kies and her two minor sisters, Viola and Mabel Kies, and were made payable to guardian of Anna Kies, a minor. At this time Anna was eighteen years of age. Her father believing she had reached her majority, had the renewal certificates of deposit issued May 8, 1930, made payable to Anna Kies. The renewal certificates of 1931 and 1932 were also payable to Anna Kies.

Reinhold Kies admits he had possession of the certificates issued in May 1932, until the bank closed.

There is a conflict in the evidence as to whether Kies had possession of the 1930 and 1931 certificates or whether they were in the safety deposit box. Anna was informed the certificates were in her name after May 8, 1930.

The bank closed in August 1932, and at that time the certificate of deposit dated May 20, 1932, was in the possession of Reinhold Kies.

In September 1932, eight years after the death of Mr. Her-rig, Reinhold Kies was appointed guardian of his daughter, Anna Kies.

In December 1932, this suit was commenced and in February 1933, Anna became of age.

From the date of the death of Mr. Herrig in 1924, to the date of the appointment of Reinhold Kies as guardian in 1932, Kies was the natural guardian of his daughter Anna and having taken possession and control of her property became her de facto guardian.

The propositions relied on by the plaintiff are:

(1) That guardian Herrig did not exercise reasonable diligence in the care and preservation and lawful disposal of all money in his hands as guardian and failed to turn the same over *58 to the plaintiff and that under the terms of the bond the sureties are liable for such money coming into the hands of the guardian.

(2) That it was the legal right and duty of the surety on this bond to petition the court for the appointment of a guardian after the decease of Herrig.

(3) That the defendant Brown as surety was liable to account for the funds which were shown to have come into the hands of his principal even though such loss might have occurred after the death of the principal and during the minority of the ward.

Appellee especially relies on the following provision of the bond:

“And the sureties on such bond shall be liable for all money or public property that may come into the hands of such officer at any time during his possession of the office.”

We cannot sustain these propositions nor the judgment of the trial court.

I. We now give our attention to the first proposition relied on by the plaintiff. The record does not show whether or not Mr. Herrig obtained a court order authorizing the deposit of the funds in the bank. The certificate of deposit held by Herrig as guardian was identical in words and punctuation with the certificates taken out by Kies during the time he assumed to act as guardian for his daughter, Anna.

The certificate of deposit secured from the bank by Kies, May 11, 1931, reads as follows:

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268 N.W. 910, 222 Iowa 54, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kies-v-brown-iowa-1936.