Patton's Exr. v. Smith

114 S.W. 315, 130 Ky. 819, 1908 Ky. LEXIS 327
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedDecember 11, 1908
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 114 S.W. 315 (Patton's Exr. v. Smith) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Patton's Exr. v. Smith, 114 S.W. 315, 130 Ky. 819, 1908 Ky. LEXIS 327 (Ky. Ct. App. 1908).

Opinion

Opinion of the Court by

Judge Carroll —

Affirming.

In this action the appellee, Smith, sought to subject to the payment of a judgment in his favor against appellant B. F. Patton’s land the title to which was in the wife of appellant. The lower court granted the relief sought, and this judgment we are asked on this appeal to reverse.

There is no serious dispute as to the facts. In 1892 appellant and his wife purchased from Robinson a tract of land in Garrard county, Ky., containing 253 acres, for the sum of $10,600. The title was made to the wife, who paid $7,000 of the purchase price in cash with her own money. For the balance of the purchase price two notes were executed for $1,828, due in one and two years from date. In 1897 they bought 82 acres of land from McGrath for $4,000, onerthird of which was paid in cash, and for the balance two notes of equal amounts, due in one and two years, were .executed. The title to this land was also, conveyed to the wife. It is these two tracts of land that the lower.court adjudged a lien upon to secure the payment of appellee’s judgment, upon the ground that, excepting the $7,000 of her own money invested in the land, and about $1,200 yet due on the purchase price of the McGrath land, the, remainder was paid by the labor, services, and good business management [821]*821of the husband. When the Robinson land w;as purchased they moved on it, and engaged in the business of farming; and the balance due on that tract, as well as the purchase price of the McGrath tract, except the amount yet due, was paid with the proceeds of crops and stock from these farms. Patton was an industrious, thrifty, money-making farmer, and was assisted in the management of the farm by his sons, who were industrious and prudent young men. They raised large crops of hemp, tobacco, corn and other produce, and handled and fed mules, cattle, sheep, and hogs, and in their various operations were very successful. The wife took no part in the conduct or management of the farm, leaving this entirely to her husband, who did all the buying and selling, and in other respects conducted the farm as if it were his own. The accounts in the banks in which they did business were kept in the name of the wife, but all the transactions were conducted through Patton, who deposited the money and drew it out on cheeks in the name of his wife, but signed by him. The two tracts of land when purchased cost approximately $40 per acre, but when the judgment appealed from was rendered they were worth $80 per acre. This great increase in the value of the land was due to the natural enhancement in the value of land generally in the neighborhood wheie this land was located, and also to the fact that it was well and prudently taken care of. In May, 1908, when Mr. Patton gave his deposition in the case, he testified that there was on the farm 51 head of cattle, worth about $32.50 apiece; that he had 27 or 28 head of horses and colts worth $2,200; 4 mules worth $550; 205 sheep and 200 lambs worth $3.50 apiece — makng the value of the stock in round numbers about $5,000. So that the value of the land is [822]*822now $26,800, and the personalty $5,000, making a total of $31,800. Assuming that the land purchased by Mrs. Patton with $7,000 is now worth $14,000, and that this should be deducted from the present value of the personalty and real estate, it would leave a balance of $17,800, which amount represents the value of the industry, energy, and skill of Mr. Patton during these years. He testified that his indebtedness at the time he gave his deposition was in round numbers $7,550. This, subtracted from the $17,800, would leave a balance of say $10,000. One thousand two hundred dollars of this indebtedness represents the balance of the purchase price due on the McGrath land; the remainder being incurred for borrowed money and other purposes. In estimating the pro'fit made on the original purchase, counsel for appellant insists that the reasonable rental of the land purchased by Mrs. Patton should be taken into' consideration, and that this rent ought to be deducted from the difference between the value of the estate at the time of the purchase of the Robinson tract and the value of of the real and personal estate now, upon-the ground that the wife was entitled to- the reasonable rent of her- land, free from coercive subjection for the payment of her husband’s debts.

Upon this state of facts the legal question arises, should this McGrath land, and- so much of the Robinson tract as may be necessary, be subjected to appellee’s debt? At the prevailing prices the McGrath land will sell for more than enough to satisfy this debt, after first paying the vendor’s lien upon it of $-1,200, and the judgment directs that- this land be first sold. It is very clear that, as the land of the wife can not be subjected to the payment of the husband’s debts, unless- it has been set apart for that purpose in [823]*823the maimer provided in the statute, neither can the rent received by her from the land be subjected by his creditors. But that question does not present itself in this case. There is no attempt here made to subject either the land bought by the wife or the rent of the same. The right of recovery is rested upon the ground that the property sought to be subjected was accumulated solely by the industry, energy, and skill •of her husband; and, this being so, it is subject to his debts. As there can be no doubt, from an examination of this record, that much more property in- value than is necessary to satisfy the appellee’s debt was on hand when the judgment, was rendered, and that it represented and was. produced by the industry and good management of Mr. Patton, we see no escápe from the conclusion that the judgment of the lower court was correct. There is no substantial difference between the facts of this ease and those in Blackburn v. Thompson, 66 S. W. 5, 23 Ky. Law Rep. 1723, 56 L. R. A. 938. There the attempt was made to subject to the husband’s debt a house and lot conveyed to the wife, upon the ground that it was purchased and paid for by the husband, and the title taken to the wife with the fraudulent purpose of cheating his creditors. The evidence disclosed that Blackburn, the husband, was an admirable business man, that he had entire charge of the business, and that the property purchased was paid for out of profits of the business, although it was conducted in the name of his wife. The court, in an opinion holding that the property was liable for the debts of the husband, said: “It was held in Gross v. Eddinger, 85 Ky. 168, 3 S. W. 1, 8 Ky. Law Rep. 829, where the facts were very similar to those in this case, that the husband’s creditors were entitled to subject to the payment of [824]*824their debt a lot purchased with the profits of a business conducted by the husband as agent for the wife, the’title to which was in the wife. And in Brooks, Waterfield & Co. v. Frisbie, etc., 99 Ky. 131, 18 Ky. Law Rep. 555, 35 S. W. 106, 59 Am. St. Rep. 452, it was held that the creditors of an insolvent husband were entitled to subject to the payment of their debts the* increase in the value of the wife’s property, which was chiefly due to the skill, energy, and labor of the husbánd. In Moran v. Moran, 75 Ky. 303, it was held that the creditors of an insolvent husband were entitled to súbject all that he might be able to earn, in excess of what was necessary for the reasonable support of himself and family, to the payment of their debts, notwithstanding the fact that it had been invested in property in the wife’s name. And the same' ruling was followed in Edelmuth v. Wybrant, 53 S. W. 528, 21 Ky. Law Rep.

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Bluebook (online)
114 S.W. 315, 130 Ky. 819, 1908 Ky. LEXIS 327, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pattons-exr-v-smith-kyctapp-1908.