Mechanics' & Traders' Bank v. Harrison

68 Ga. 463
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedFebruary 15, 1882
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 68 Ga. 463 (Mechanics' & Traders' Bank v. Harrison) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mechanics' & Traders' Bank v. Harrison, 68 Ga. 463 (Ga. 1882).

Opinion

Speer, Justice.

1. This case comes before this court on a judgment overruling a demurrer to the bill of complainants. The writ of error brings that issue here properly, because, if the demurrer had been sustained and the case dismissed, there would have been an end to the controversy. But, each party has excepted to other rulings of the court interlocutory in their character, such as reference to the master and demurrer to answers in the nature of cross-bills by the defendants. These exceptions cannot be heard on this writ of error, because they can only be reviewed when the final hearing of the case has been had. See Code, §4250. The language of that section is — speaking of these interlocutory exceptions — “and should the case at its final termination be carried by writ of error to the supreme court, by either- party, error may be assigned upon such bills of exceptions and a reversal and new trial may be allowed thereon, when it is manifest that such error or decision of the court has - or may have affected the final result of the case.”

So that it is too clear for argument, that these interlocutory exceptions cannot be heard until the final termination of the case in the court below. If either party has not filed the exceptions as interlocutory, but has embodied them in the bill of' exceptions now brought here, he may still file them in the court below, and make them of record, so as to be brought up for review on the final termination of the cause, should that termination of it come to this court for review. (64 Ga., 740; Standford vs. Treadwell, present term.) Therefore, the only question to be now reviewed is the demurrer to the original bill.

2, 3, 4. A motiqn was made to dismiss this writ of error [466]*466on three grounds, first, that the defendants were not served. They need not be served because other defendants have brought this cause, and they need only to serve the complainants, especially when they demur to the bill for want of equity. Second, because the bill of exceptions was not certified within thirty days from that decision rendered, whereby alone the court could adjudicate the point, which it is claimed was when the court passed upon the injunction.

But, on the application for injunction at chambers, the sole question is the grant or refusal of that writ. No judgment overruling the demurrer was then rendered, and none could have been rendered (58 Ga., 184), on the mere application for injunction. Thirdly, because the exceptions come up by piecemeal. We have lopped off the pieces, and the only one left is as to overruling the demurrer to the original bill. We, therefore, overrule the motion to dismiss this writ of error, as to the question we now shall and can only review, and to that we now address ourselves.

5. Complainant below, as a foreign executor of his wife, Mary G. Harrison, who died in New Jersey, in conjunction with certain legatees under her will, filed their bill against various defendants, creditors of the testatrix, and also creditors of certain legatees under the will, in which he alleges that creditors by numerous suits, both by attachment and at common law, are levying upon certain property of the estate, seeking to subject the interest of said legatees in said property to their debts. It is alleged that Mary G. Harrison, the testatrix, formerly Jones, and her sister, Sarah F. Gardner, were tenants in common, by inheritance to a large amount of real estate in the city of Augusta; that on the marriage of said Sarah and Mary G., with their husbands, all their interest in said property was conveyed to trustees in said deeds named to their separate use, with certain powers, limitations, etc.; that soon after the marriage of Mary G., a partition of [467]*467said lands was had, between her and her sister. After said partition, Sarah, under power in the marriage settlement, sold to the trustees of Mary G., in consideration of two bonds of $40,000.00 each and an annuity of five thousand dollars to R. H. Gardner and his wife, Sarah Gardner, to be paid to them during their joint lives and to the survivor, the entire interest held by them under the marriage settlement of Sarah Gardner. The object of the sale was, first, to secure said annuity to Gardner and wife, and, secondly, to create an indebtedness from the trust estate of Mary G. Harrison, for the benefit of those entitled to said trust estate of Mrs. Gardner in remainder. It is charged the annuity of $5,000.00 was regularly paid to Gardner and wife jointly, to the death of Mrs. Gardner, in 1869, and since to R. H. Gardner. Mrs. Gardner died, leaving as her blood heirs the testatrix, then living, and her brother, Geo. N. Jones. Testatrix died in 1875 and the brother died in 1878.

Complainant is advised one of the two bonds of $40,-000.00, payable upon the death of Mr. Gardner, has, by the terms'of Mrs. Gardner’s marriage settlement, become the property of testatrix’s estate, and has thus become extinguished, but the other bond is a valid claim against her estate, payable on the death of R. H. Gardner, and that the annuity of $5,000.00 is a yearly subsisting claim against testatrix’s estate during the life of R. H. Gardner.

The legatees, under the will of testatrix, are the Protestant Episcopal Church of the Diocese of Georgia, the complainant and his three sons; their several interests appear by the will exhibited.

Complainant alleges that, supposing the estate in his hands as executor was ample to meet its debts due Gardner and Jones, and desirous of providing for W. H. Harrison, Jr., who had arrived at age, he executed to him certain conveyances of portions of the real estate of testatrix as appears by deeds attached, and which was about in value what his share in said estate was after making al[468]*468lowance for claims against the estate — except it was underderstood that the rents of the property so conveyed were to be reserved to aid in paying the annuity to Gardner. He alleges much of the real estate left is unimproved and unproductive and subject to annual taxes of $3,000.00 or more, and that the whole income is not quite sufficient to pay the necessary expenses of the annuity, and if the property conveyed to Harrison, Jr., is withdrawn from the estate, the income of the remainder will be wholly insufficient to meet the charges upon the property. Harrison, Jr., has mortgaged the property conveyed to him to certain trustees to secure the payment of $30,000.00 of bonds issued by him, which have become due, and foreclosure is threatened. He has likewise mortgaged certain portions of said property to Warner, trustee, to secure the payment of certain notes he (Harrison, Jr.,) indorsed for Hazleton & Harrison to the amount $18,000.00, all of which are due and protested.

The Mechanics’ and Traders’ Bank have garnished complainant, individually as executor, on account of a debt due it by Harrison, Jr. Other parties have sued complainant individually and threaten to levy on his interest in the estate of testatrix. He cannot permit his interest or that of the property conveyed to W. H. Harrison, Jr., to be levied on and sold by attachment and general judgments until provision is first made for the creditors and other legatees of the estate.

Complainant charges that various judgments have been obtained by the individual creditors of complainant against him, and also against W. H.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Hutchins v. Williams
95 S.E.2d 674 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1956)
McCallum v. Bryant
92 S.E.2d 531 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1956)
Shetzen v. C. G. Aycock Realty Co.
92 S.E.2d 114 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1956)
Tripp v. State
79 S.E.2d 591 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1953)
Chapman v. Commercial National Bank
68 S.E.2d 603 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1952)
Harper v. Atlanta Milling Company
48 S.E.2d 89 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1948)
Ball v. Moore
182 S.E. 28 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1935)
Huey v. National Bank
169 S.E. 491 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1933)
Butler v. Kendrick
158 S.E. 13 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1931)
Hooks v. Prince
156 S.E. 683 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1931)
Trust Co. v. Mobley
150 S.E. 169 (Court of Appeals of Georgia, 1929)
Jones v. Nisbet
142 S.E. 164 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1928)
O'Connor v. Horne
141 S.E. 74 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1927)
Bellinger v. Eblin & Co.
124 S.E. 137 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1924)
Sims v. Jones
123 S.E. 614 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1924)
Booth v. State
63 S.E. 502 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1908)
Crovatt v. Baker
61 S.E. 127 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1908)
Berryman v. Haden
38 S.E. 53 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1901)
Harvey v. Bowles
37 S.E. 364 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1900)
Atlanta National Building & Loan Ass'n v. Jones
36 S.E. 968 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1900)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
68 Ga. 463, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mechanics-traders-bank-v-harrison-ga-1882.