Nash v. Taylor

83 Ind. 347
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 15, 1881
DocketNo. 7698
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 83 Ind. 347 (Nash v. Taylor) 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
Nash v. Taylor, 83 Ind. 347 (Ind. 1881).

Opinion

Elliott, C. J.

Appellee was the plaintiff below, and in her complaint alleges that she is the widow and legatee of John Taylor, deceased; that he died August 4th, 1865; that his will was duly admitted to probate; that afterwards an action for partition was instituted by some of the children of deceased; that the land in controversy in this action was set [348]*348off to Frederick D. Taylor; that the part set off to him was-chargeable with one-seventh of an annuity of $1,500 settled upon the appellee by the will of her husband; that all the property of the testator except that of which partition was made, and that designated as the homestead and devised to the ■appellee for life, was exhausted in the payment of debts due from the testator; that soon after partition was made Frederick D. Taylor sold all his interest in the homestead, and thereafter mortgaged to the appellant Nash the land in controversy ; that Nash foreclosed his mortgage and claims that his lien is superior to the annuity in favor of the appellee charged upon the property by her husband’s will; that Frederick D. Taylor is insolvent; that the property is unimproved, and yields no income.

We regard the complaint as good. The fact that the decree in partition did not expressly preserve to the appelleethe annuity charged upon the land did not destroy her rights.. Ordinarily, partition does not create or destroy title. Each of the tenants has the same title that he owned prior to the petition; interests are severed, but new titles are not created. Utterback v. Terhune, 75 Ind. 363; Avery v. Akins, 74 Ind. 283. Title may, under our statute, be put in issue, and when this is done a judgment will be conclusive. The complaint before us shows no adjudication upon any question of title; it simply shows a severance of interests by partition.

We can not assent to the argument of counsel that the appellee is estopped to assert a right to the annuity. She has done no act which will work an estoppel, and the decree in partition does not create an estoppel by record. It does not appear that any other question was adjudicated in the partition suit than the right to a severance of the unity of title ; and we can not presume that there was an adjudication upon any other.

Where a will constitutes a link in the title through which a grantee or mortgagee claims, he is bound to take notice of the provisions of the instrument. The appellant Nash can not [349]*349"be heard to say that he was ignorant of the annuity charged upon the land mortgaged to him, for the will charging it constituted one of the muniments of his mortgagor’s title.

A testator may, unquestionably, charge an annuity upon land devised, and in such a case the devisee takes the land burdened with the charge. "Where a devise of land is made with such a burden the devisee can not hold it without conforming to the requirements of the will.

A charge upon real estate may be made in express terms, ■or the intention of the testator may be gathered from the entire will taken together. Lupton v. Lupton, 2 Johns. Ch. 614. It is firmly established that a charge may be implied :and requires no particular form of words. Ripple v. Ripple, 1 Rawle, 386; Davis’s Appeal, 83 Pa. St. 348; Gilbert’s Appeal, 85 Pa. St. 347; Quinby v. Frost, 61 Me. 77; Heslop v. Gatton, 71 Ill. 528; Lindsey v. Lindsey, 45 Ind. 552.

Where a testator directs that his legacies and debts shall be first paid, and then devises real estate, a charge is created. Newman v. Johnson, 1 Vern. 45; Harris v. Ingledew, 3 P. Will. 91; Reynolds v. Reynolds’ Ex’rs, 16 N. Y. 257; 3 Jarman Wills (5th Am. ed.), 404, and authorities in note.

The first and second items of the will, here the subject of 'investigation, provide for the payment of debts and funeral •expenses, and for the payment of the annuity claimed by the ■appellee; the third makes a specific bequest of personal property to her, and the fourth is as follows:

“Fourth. I give, devise and bequeath all the rest and resi-•due of my real and personal estate and property of every kind and description, after all just claims and demands are paid, I may own or be possessed of at the time of my decease, to my ■children and their heirs forever, share and share alike. Yo ■division or partition of any property or real estate shall be made until all my just debts are paid.”

The will brings the case fully within the rule declared by ■■the authorities cited.

Another consideration strengthens the" conclusion that the [350]*350annuity bequeathed to the appellee was intended by the testator to be a charge upon the land devised to his children, the bequest to her is made in lieu of her rights as a surviving wife; and this, taken in connection with the whole tenor of the will, very plainly implies an intention to create a right, in appellee’s favor, to the postponement of the other devisees and legatees. We have no doubt that a charge was created upon the land acquired by the appellant’s mortgagor under the will of John Taylor.

Where lands are charged a subsequent mortgagee or purchaser takes them subject to the charge. Equity will enforce such a charge upon the lands in the hands of subsequent grantees. 2 Redf. Wills, p. 209, section 7.

It is no doubt true that personal property is the primary fund out of which such an annuity as that claimed by appellee is to be paid, but where, as here, it is exhausted in the payment of the expenses of administration and debts, resort may be had to the real estate.

The second paragraph of the answer is based upon a release executed by the appellee to Charles B. Taylor, wherein it is provided, that the appellee “ does forever release and discharge Charles B. Taylor, and all property by him acquired from the estate of John Taylor, deceased, from all further payment of annuity under the will of the decedent.” The contention of the learned counsel is, that this release operated as an extinguishment of the entire annuity. The argument is, that such a release is the same in principle as that of one of several joint obligors. We can not assent to this doctrine. There had been a severance of the estate, and Charles B. Taylor’s portion was liable only for its proportionate share, and his discharge did not release the other devisees or their property. The burden of the charge apportioned to Charles B. Taylor was one-seventh of the entire annuity, leaving the remaining six-sevenths charged against the six other devisees respectively. In such a case the release of one can not be deemed the release of all. The case is strictly analogous to [351]*351that of a mortgage upon interests held in severalty; either of the mortgagors may discharge the mortgage so far as it binds his separate estate, and not disturb the lien upon the other several interests. 2 Jones Mortg., section 981. The release to Charles B. Taylor did not increase appellant’s burden, nor did it in any way affect his rights.

The counter-claim filed by Nash alleges that an assessment for a street improvement was duly levied by the corporate authorities of the city of Lafayette; that it was a lien upon the land in controversy; that at the time the assessment was levied Frederick D.

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Bluebook (online)
83 Ind. 347, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nash-v-taylor-ind-1881.