Mitcham v. Mitcham

173 So. 132, 186 La. 641, 1937 La. LEXIS 1113
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedMarch 1, 1937
DocketNos. 33475, 33539.
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 173 So. 132 (Mitcham v. Mitcham) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mitcham v. Mitcham, 173 So. 132, 186 La. 641, 1937 La. LEXIS 1113 (La. 1937).

Opinion

LAND, Justice.

This appeal consists of two cases which, by joint motion of appellants and appellees, were ordered consolidated by this court on appeal. No. 33539, Henry Grady Mitcham v. Zollie Mitcham et al., Third District Court, Parish of Union, is a suit for partition by licitation filed in that court October 2, 1934.

It is alleged in this case that petitioner and defendants, heirs of Elijah W. Mit *645 cham and Sallie Mitcham, deceased, were recognized as the sole heirs of decedents on August 23, 1932, and were sent into possession of their estates by judgment of the Third district court for Union parish, in which they were decreed to he the owners of a deposit in the Bank of Bernice, Union parish, and that each of the heirs has received his pro rata share of the deposit. It is also alleged in the petition that the heirs of decedents have made a division of the proceeds of some bank stock.

In the proceeding above referred to, the heirs of Elijah W. Mitcham and Sallie Mitcham accepted the estates of their deceased father and mother “purely, simply, and unconditionally,” and prayed to be recognized as heirs and to be sent into possession of the cash in the Bank of Bernice, Union Parish, and “into the possession of all other property, of whatsoever nature and kind, left by their deceased parents,” and judgment was rendered accordingly. No 33539, Tr., pp. 40, 41, 43, 44.

The following allegations are also made in the petition in this case:

That, at the time of their death, decedents left real and personal property, situated in Union and Claiborne parishes, all of which belonged to the community of acquets and gains existing between decedents prior to their death.

That Zollie Mitcham, defendant, and one of the heirs, is interested to the extent of an undivided one-seventh interest, plus an undivided one-fourteenth interest, formerly owned by Henry Grady Mitcham, another heir, and acquired by Zollie Mitcham at a trustee’s sale in the cause entitled “Henry Grady Mitcham, Bankrupt, No, 3772 In Bankruptcy on the Docket of the Federal District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.”

That defendant Joseph J. Mitcham (who is not an heir but a third person) is the owner of an undivided one-half interest in certain lands in Union parish, purchased by Elijah W. Mitcham with Joseph J. Mitch-am from Mrs. Hettie R. Elliott and others.

That the heirs are no longer willing to hold the property in indivisión and as co-owners with defendants herein, including Joseph J. Mitcham, and desire that same be partitioned by licitation according to law, as the property cannot be conveniently divided in kind.

That the property to be divided consists of a one-half interest in 440 acres of land, and the whole interest in a house and lot in the town of Bernice, Union parish; and 60 acres of land in one tract, and a gin lot of 9 acres, in Claiborne parish, and some, notes and accounts due the estates of their deceased parents.

In their joint answer, the defendants aver that Zollie Mitcham, one of the defendants, has purchased the undivided one-seventh interest of Mrs. Eolian Green, another heir, in the lot and residence in the town of Bernice, Union parish.

Defendants admit that plaintiff is entitled to have the property “of the successions of Elijah W. and Sallie Mitcham” partitioned, but deny the right to have Joseph J. Mitcham a party to the suit.

*647 Defendants also deny that the successions have been closed, as there are collations to be made by several of the heirs, and aver that the successions could not be closed under these conditions.

Defendants then set up in their answer the amount of collations due by each of the heirs, and, after praying that the property be sold as prayed for by plaintiff and the proceeds divided, defendants further pray that each of the heirs be ordered to collate the amounts alleged in the answer to be due by each.

Plaintiff filed a motion to strike out that part of the answer which deals with the subject of collations on the following grounds:

(1) That the successions of Elijah W. Mitcham and Mrs. Sallie Mitcham have been closed by the acceptance of same purely, simply, and unconditionally by all the heirs.

(2) That this is an ordinary suit for partition between co-owners and, under .articles 1242 and 1290 of the Revised Civil Code, collation cannot be exacted in such a suit, any indebtedness of the heirs due to the succession of Elijah W. Mitcham being irrelevant and immaterial to any issue, which may be raised in the suit for partition.

Judgment was rendered in the lower court rejecting the demands of defendants for collation, and ordering the partition by licitation of the lands in Claiborne and Union parishes, as prayed for.

From this judgment defendants have appealed suspensively and devolutively.

1. On May 9, 1930, Mrs. Stella Thompson, Mrs. Minnie Weldon, and Mrs. Eolian Green, residents of Claiborne parish, and Mrs. Vida Goss, a resident of Ouachita parish, filed a petition in the Second district court for Claiborne parish, claiming by inheritance from Elijah W. Mitcham and Sallie Mitcham, their father and mother, an undivided five-seventh interest in a promissory note in the sum of $1,900, dated November 30, 1927, due December 1, 1932, and signed by J. Z. Rhea as maker, and made payable to Elijah W. Mitcham as bearer. The note at the time was in the possession of the Homer Trust & Savings Bank, and was held by the bank as collateral security for the payment of a note of $780, dated July 30, 1929, due six months after date, and signed by H. G. Mitcham, as maker, and payable to the Homer Trust & Savings Bank. No. 33475, Tr., pp. 103—106.

As the purpose of this suit was to have the note sold at public auction to effect a partition among the heirs, H. Grady Mitch-am and Zollie Mitcham, the two other heirs, were made parties defendant to this suit.

On February 2, 1931, judgment was rendered by the district court for Claiborne parish, ordering the note to be sold at public auction to effect a partition among the co-heirs. No. 33475, Tr., p. 108.,

If the district court for the parish of Claiborne was the proper forum in which to open the succession of Elijah W. Mitcham, who died in that parish, it follows necessarily that his succession was accepted in that court purely, simply, and *649 unconditionally by all of his heirs, by virtue of the above proceeding in the district court for Claiborne parish, praying for the partition among the coheirs of the note in question. If the district court for the parish of Union was the proper forum for the opening of the succession of Elijah W. Mitcham, then his heirs have also accepted in that court his succession, and that of his wife, who died in Union parish, purely, simply, and unconditionally.

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Bluebook (online)
173 So. 132, 186 La. 641, 1937 La. LEXIS 1113, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mitcham-v-mitcham-la-1937.