Mack v. Passaic Nat. Bank & Trust Co.

150 F.2d 474, 1945 U.S. App. LEXIS 2796
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedJuly 6, 1945
DocketNo. 8855
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 150 F.2d 474 (Mack v. Passaic Nat. Bank & Trust Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mack v. Passaic Nat. Bank & Trust Co., 150 F.2d 474, 1945 U.S. App. LEXIS 2796 (3d Cir. 1945).

Opinion

BIGGS, Circuit Judge.

The plaintiffs, Mack and Elias, executrices of the estate of Clara B. Prince, brought suit as holders of “Certificate[s] of shares of proceeds of sale of the East and West Ridgelawn Cemeteries, bodies corporate of the State of New Jersey”, against Passaic National Bank & Trust Company hereinafter called the Trust Company, successor trustee to the Passaic Trust & Safe Deposit Company, hereinafter called the Deposit Company, alleging a breach of the provisions of a trust indenture by the successor trustee. The trust indenture, executed on December 21, 1906, recites, among other things, that one Gruber conveyed to the Deposit Company certain lands in Passaic County, New Jersey, and that the Deposit" Company conveyed [475]*475these lands to East1 Ridgelawn Cemetery subject to certain trusts in pertinent part as follows: East Ridgelawn Cemetery was to pay to the Deposit Company as trustee not less than 6‡ for each square foot of land sold by the Cemetery Company for burial purposes, the Deposit Company being required to use these moneys for the perpetual care of the cemetery. The rest of the money received from the sale of lots, less certain specified expenses, was also to be paid to the Deposit Company which on certain dates was required to divide it among certificate holders of which Mrs. Prince was one.

The form of the certificate issued was set out in the indenture and was indeed anomalous. The certificate was as follows: “Certificate of shares of proceeds of sale of the East and West Ridgelawn Cemeteries, bodies corporate of the State of New Jersey. This is to certify that * * * is the registered holder of * * * shares of the proceeds of the sale of these companies of sub-lots or plots in the hands of said corporations after deducting certain expenses, charges and disbursements provided for in the deed by which the said lands were conveyed to the said corporations by the * * * Deposit Company. * * * This certificate is part of an issue of shares amounting in the whole to thirteen thousand five hundred. * * * The holder of this certificate is entitled to receive his pro rata share of such proceeds of sale from time to time as provided in said agreement above mentioned. Witness the seals of the companies and the signatures of their Presidents and Treasurers this -- day of -, 19 — .” There follows the words “East Ridgelawn Cemetery - President - Treasurer.” and "West Ridgelawn Cemetery - President -- Treasurer.” It should be stated that except within the form of the certificate just quoted, West Ridgelawn Cemetery is not referred to in the indenture. The parties state that a trust indenture in similar terms, mutatis mutandis, was executed on June 3, 1907, by the Deposit Company in respect to the sale of lots of West Ridgelawn Cemetery. Mrs. Mack and Mrs. Elias as executrices own certificates in the form stated.

The complaint filed by the executrices alleges that the Trust Company is the successor to the Deposit Company, that the Trust Company is in breach of its fiduciary duty in that it failed to collect a certain money decree procured by it in the New Jersey Court of Chancery on July 18, 1933 against East Ridgelawn Cemetery in the sum of $205,973 and that the Trust Company has permitted East Ridgelawn Cemetery “to disburse its funds to other creditors for salaries and other expenses * * *”, that “Although requested by other shareholders [certificate holders] to * * * sequester the income of the * * * East Ridgelawn Cemetery for the purpose of applying a portion thereof to the payment” of the decree of the Court of Chancery of New Jersey, the Trust Company failed to do so and that by reason of this failure the income and funds of East Ridgelawn Cemetery was dissipated. The complaint refers to the trust indenture of 1906 and to conveyances made to "East and West Ridge-lawn Cemeteries” and asserts that though the Deposit Company was given a lien upon the cemetery properties “upon default in payment of the shares of proceeds of sale of lots by the said cemeteries” the lien has been lost by the failure of the Trust Company to exercise it. The complaint also alleges that the Trust Company was a negligent trustee because it invested a large part of the “permanent care fund", the fund for the perpetual care of graves, in securities illegal for trust investments under the laws of New' Jersey whereby the moneys were dissipated.

The complainant prays that the Trust Company be compelled to account for the losses suffered by the plaintiffs’ estate and by “all other shareholders of the East and West Ridgelawn Cemeteries”; that the Trust Company be relieved of its trust and that a decree be entered removing it as trustee; that the Trust Company be required to pay to the new trustee such sums as may be determined to be due and owing from it by reason of the trustee’s negligence, misfeasance and nonfeasance; and for such other and further relief as the court may deem to be just and proper.

The Trust Company appeared and filed an answer and counterclaim.2 The learned District Judge referred the case to a special master. It appears from evidence offered to the master that neither the Deposit Company nor the Trust Company collected or received funds from West Ridgelawn Cemetery but did collect and receive funds [476]*476from East Ridgelawn Cemetery. It does not appear how the Deposit Company and its successor the Trust Company could collect funds from the sale of lots in East Ridgelawn Cemetery for the benefit of certificate holders and not collect funds for the benefit of certificate holders from the sale of lots in West Ridgelawn Cemetery without standing in breach of trust. The memorandum opinion3 of Vice Chancellor Backes and the decree entered in the New Jersey Chancery suit cited do not compel a contrary conclusion. From the decree and the opinion it appears that on January 1, 1933, there was due from East Ridge-lawn Cemetery to the perpetual care fund of that cemetery the sum of $3,418, and that there was due from East Ridgelawn Cemetery to the fund for the benefit of the certificate holders the sum of $205,973. The learned Vice Chancellor did not determine whether or not there was any sum due from West Ridgelawn Cemetery to the trustee. West Ridgelawn Cemetery was not a defendant in the case before him.

In the proceeding in the court below the Trust Company filed an account “as to the dividend and perpetual care funds”. The special master received evidence in respect to the trustee’s account, heard argument and on May 22, 1944, filed a report recommending the approval and allowance of the account of the Trust Company “as Trustee under the Declaration of Trust”. On this report the court below entered a decree which contained a number of recitals. The first states that Gruber conveyed certain lands in the “City of Clifton,' County of Passaic and State of New Jersey, to the - Deposit Company set forth in two Declarations of Trust made by the - Deposit Company dated December 21, 1906 [dealing with lands of East Ridgelawn Cemetery] and June 3, 1907 [dealing with lands of West Ridgelawn Cemetery] respectively -; that in accordance with the said Declarations of Trust the-Deposit Company took title to the said lands and premises, which it thereafter conveyed to two Cemetery Associations

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Bluebook (online)
150 F.2d 474, 1945 U.S. App. LEXIS 2796, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mack-v-passaic-nat-bank-trust-co-ca3-1945.