Marmon v. White

51 N.E. 930, 151 Ind. 445, 1898 Ind. LEXIS 116
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 16, 1898
DocketNo. 18,409
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 51 N.E. 930 (Marmon v. White) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Marmon v. White, 51 N.E. 930, 151 Ind. 445, 1898 Ind. LEXIS 116 (Ind. 1898).

Opinion

Monks, J.

This action was brought by appellant against appellees to set aside certain conveyances of real estate as fraudulent, and subject the same to the payment of a judgment recovered by appellant against appellees Rush White and William T. White. The court made a special finding of the facts, and stated conclusions of law thereon in favor of appellees, and rendered judgment accordingly. The only error assigned is that the court erred in each conclusion of law.

The facts found are, substantially, as follows: Appellees Rush White and Ida L. White were married in 1895, at which time ’Rush White was the owner of a lot in the city of Indianapolis. Prior to the marriage they entered into an oral agreement that, in consideration of the marriage of said Ida L. to him, said Rush White would convey to her said real estate as a marriage settlement. In 1896, Rush White conveyed said real estate to his wife, the only consideration therefor being said agreement above named. At the time of said conveyance said real estate was worth $2,600.00, and was subject to a mortgage of $1,166.00. Rush White, at the time of making said conveyance had no other property except a one-half interest in the stock of groceries, etc., owned by the firm of White & White, his brother, the appellee William T. White, being the other member of the firm; which partnership property, including the claims owing to said firm, was then worth $1,700.00, and the indebtedness [447]*447of the firm was then $1,800.00. The firm property was on May 18, 1896, sold for $1,407.98, and all of the proceeds thereof were placed in the hands of a trustee for certain creditors, whose claims equaled the proceeds received by said trustee. The appellees William T. White and Mamie White were married in 1889. In March, 1894, said William T. White purchased a certain lot in the city of Indianapolis, paying therefor $1,500.00 cash, and assuming the payment of a mortgage thereon for $500.00. At the time of said purchase appellee Mamie White had, as her separate estate, $800.00 in money. Afterwards it was agreed by parol between said husband and wife that said Mamie, out of her own means, should remodel and improve the house on said real estate, in consideration of which said William T. should cause the same to be conveyed through a trustee to himself and said Mamie, his wife, to have and hold the same as tenants by entireties and under said agreement appellee Mamie White expended of her own estate, in improving the.said real estate, and for certain street and sewer assessments, the sum.of $873.00. On March 8, 1896, said William T. White and Mamie, his wife, conveyed said real estate to a trustee, who conveyed the same to them as husband and wife. The consideration for such conveyance was the payment of the said sum of $873.00. The value of the said real estate was at the time of said conveyance, and at the time of the trial, $2,630.00, and the rental value thereof per month $18.00. At the time of said conveyance to said trustee said William T. White contemplated insolvency, and executed said deed for the purpose— First, of securing the payment made by his wife, under the agreement heretofore mentioned; and, second, to place the title to said real estate in the name of himself and wife, so as to prevent the same being seized [448]*448by the creditors of the firm of 'White & White; but appellee had no knowledge that her husband was insolvent, or of any fraudulent intent on his part. At the time of said conveyance by Rush White and his wife, and at the time of the conveyance by William T. White and his wife to said trustee, the firm of White & White was indebted to appellant on contract in the sum of $183.53, for which appellant after-wards recovered a judgment against said appellees Rush White and William T. Wfiite. Appellees Rush White and William T. White were at the time of making said conveyances, and now are, householders residing in Marion county, Indiana. The court found, as a conclusion of law, that appellant was not entitled to have either tract of said real estate subjected to sale to pay his judgment.

The finding does not show that the conveyance by Rush White to his wife, Ida L. White, was made with a fraudulent intent or purpose, or that she had any knowledge of such intent or purpose, but it was found that the consideration for said conveyance to her was her agreement to marry him. This was a valuable consideration. State, ex rel., v. Osborn, 143 Ind. 671, 677, 678, and authorities cited; 6 Am. & Eng. Ency. of Law (2 ed.), 724; Wait on Fraudulent Conveyances, section 212.

It is evident that the court did not err in the conclusion of law that appellant was not entitled to have the real estate conveyed to appellee Ida L. White sold to pay his judgment. Besides, the conveyance by Rush White to his wife did not harm appellant, for the reason that at the time said conveyance was made said Rush WThite was a householder, and had no property out of which he could claim the exemption of $600.00 except said real estate. His wife Ida L. was entitled to one-third in value of said real estate [449]*449as against said appellants, under section 2669, Burns’ R. S. 1894 (2508, Horner’s R. S. 1897), if the same was sold at execution sale on said judgment. She, was also entitled to have said mortgage for $1,166.00 paid, if it could be done without encroaching on her interest in said real estate. Kelley v. Canary, 129 Ind. 460, 462, and cases cited; Purviance v. Emley, 126 Ind. 419.

It is proper, therefore, to charge the amount of said mortgage against said real estate after deducting the value of her interest therein. The value of said real estate, after deducting the value of said Ida L.’s interest therein, which she could take as against a purchaser at execution sale on said judgment, was $1,733.34. The amount of the mqrtgage, $1,166, and the $600 exemption, equal $1,766; so that, if said real estate had been sold to pay appellee’s claim at the date said deed was made, for its full value, which was $1,766, subject to the inchoate interest of the wife, the proceeds would not have been sufficient to pay the mortgage and the .exemption allowed appellee Rush White. It follows, therefore, that, even if Rush White had conveyed said real estate with the fraudulent intent of cheating and defrauding his creditors, of which intent his wife had knowledge, and the special finding had so stated, appellant would not have been damaged thereby, and would not, therefore, have been entitled to any relief in this action. Citizens’ Bank v. Bolen, 121 Ind. 301, 306, 307, and cases cited; Moss v. Jenkins, 146 Ind. 589, 599.

The rule in such a case is that when a debtor is a householder, and conveys or transfers his property to defraud his creditors, of which fraudulent intent his grantee or transferee has notice, his creditors cannot reach such property, if the value of the wife’s interest therein, the debtor’s exemption of $600, and all Kens [450]*450on such property, senior to snch creditors, equal or exceed the value of the property so conveyed or transferred. Moss v. Jenkins, supra, 599.

A different question is presented concerning the real estate conveyed by the trustee to William T. White and his wife. It cannot be said, as a matter of law, that the inchoate interest of Mamie White in the real estate of her husband conveyed to the trustee, and by him reconveyed to her and her husband, was, at that time, worth $876, one-third of $2,630, the value of said real estate as found by the court when said conveyance was made.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
51 N.E. 930, 151 Ind. 445, 1898 Ind. LEXIS 116, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marmon-v-white-ind-1898.