Robinson v. Clark

228 N.W. 852, 119 Neb. 285, 1930 Neb. LEXIS 9
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 15, 1930
DocketNo. 26944
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 228 N.W. 852 (Robinson v. Clark) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Robinson v. Clark, 228 N.W. 852, 119 Neb. 285, 1930 Neb. LEXIS 9 (Neb. 1930).

Opinion

' Thompson, J.

This is a proceeding lodged in the first instance in the county court of Johnson county, Nebraska, on May 9, 1928, by the petitioners, appellants herein, under sections 1481, 1482, and 1483, Comp. St. 1922, as amended by chapter 65, Laws 1925, and section 1484 of such statutes, for the purpose of having determined their heirship to lands in such Johnson county. Judgment was rendered in favor of the petitioners, appeal taken by the appellee herein to the district court, where the judgment of the county court was modified, as hereinafter indicated; to reverse which this appeal is had.

The questions involved herein are presented to this court for the first time, and, being complicated, it becomes necessary to detail both the law and the facts more than is usual.

The law applicable is as follows: Section 1481: “Where more than two years have elapsed since the death of a person residing in this state, or residing outside of the state, but owning real estate or any interest therein situated within this state, or who had made entry on any government lands and had not received patent therefor, and no application has been made in the state of Nebraska for the appointment of an administrator either by his heirs or by persons claiming to be creditors of said deceased, any heir of the deceased or other person having derived title to any real property or any interest therein from said deceased or from any of his heirs either by direct or mesne conveyances may make application by petition to the county court of the county in which the deceased resided at the time of .his death, or in cases where the deceased was a nonresident of the state at the time of his death then in the county court of the county where the real estate or some part thereof belonging to the deceased in his lifetime is situated, for a determination of the time of the death of the decedent, and a determination of the heirs of said deceased, the [288]*288degree of kinship and the right of descent of the real property belonging to said deceased.” Laws 1925, ,ch. 65, sec. 1.

Section 1482: “Upon filing such petition the county court' shall fix' a time for hearing said petition not less than thirty days-nor more than sixty days subsequent to the filing thereof, and notice of the time and place of said hearing shall be given to all persons interested in said estate, both creditors and heirs, setting forth the filing of said petition, the date of the death of the deceased, his place of residence, a description of the -real property of which he died seised, or a description of the real property on which he had made an entry but had not yet received patent, the interest in said real estate of the petitioner and the prayer of the petition. Said notice shall be published in a legal newspaper in said county for three successive weeks prior to said hearing.” Laws 1925, ch. 65, sec. 2.

Section 1483,: “Upon such hearing if it shall appear to the court that more than two years have elapsed since the date of the death of the deceased, that he died intestate seised of an estate of inheritance in this state, or that he died intestate having entered on government lands and not yet received a patent therefor, and that no application has been made in the state of Nebraska for the appointment of an administrator. of the estate of said deceased, the court shall determine who are the heirs of said deceased, their degree of kinship and the right of descent of the real property of which the deceased died seised, or on which he had’made an entry) and shall make-and enter his decree accordingly.” Laws 1925, ch. 65, sec. 3.

Section 1484: “Such decree, • unless appealed from as provided by law, shall be binding and conclusive upon all persons including creditors and heirs, and' all claims or demands against the estate 'of such deceased, whether due or to become‘due, whether absolute- or contingent, shall be forever barred: Provided, however, that this section shall not be construed to- effect or limit the term within which any lien against the real estate of said deceased may be enforced.” ■ ■

[289]*289The record discloses that the petition of the applicants in both the county and district courts met every requirement of the above statutes, as did also the notice had prior to the hearing in such county court. The answer, in substance, simply challenged the right of these /respective courts to enter judgment as prayed by petitioners, for the reason that claims had been filed and allowed in Kansas, as hereinafter set forth, and that they were unpaid, and that there was no other property save and except the lands here in question out of which to pay the same; further, that the claims so allowed in the Kansas court existed at the time of the death of the decedent, and were his unsecured obligations, and by his death liens were imposed on his entire estate wherever situate, and that, to the extent of bringing such claims within the proviso contained in section 1484 hereinbefore quoted. The theory at the trial was that affirmative allegations in the answer were denied.

The facts material for our consideration, admitted or left without contradiction, are as follows: That Sherman C. Robinson, a resident and citizen of Douglas county, Kansas, died on November 5, 1924, intestate, without issue, ’eaving as his sole and only heirs the petitioners herein; that at such time and prior thereto, he was the owner of an undivided one-sixth interest in the lands here in question situate in Johnson county, Nebraska, subject to the life estate held by Alice E. Robinson, one of the petitioners herein, who Had, and ever since has held, possession and control thereof, also owned lands and personal property in such Douglas county, Kansas; that more than two years had elapsed since his death, prior to the filing of the petition herein in the county court of Johnson county praying for the determination of heirship; that on November 15, 1924, appellee herein was appointed administrator of the estate of such deceased in the probate court of Douglas county, Kansas, qualified, and has been ever since, and now is, so acting; that numerous unsecured claims of indebtedness were fi’ed in such Kansas probate court by divers and sundry creditors of the deceased, and by such court allowed'; [290]*290that all of the lands and personal property in the state of Kansas were legally reduced to cash and the proceeds applied in partial payment of such allowed claims and costs of administration, leaving unpaid of such claims over $8,-000; that1-no other property, save the lands in Johnson county, Nebraska, remains undisposed of; that shortly after the appointment of such administrator he became possessed of knowledge of the aforesaid facts in reference to these Johnson county lands, but neither he, nor any heir, nor persons claiming to be creditors of the deceased, nor other person, had applied for the appointment of an administrator in this state; that this proceeding was lodged in the county court of Johnson county, Nebraska on May 9, 1928, and answer thereto filed on June 6, 1928, on which latter date the administrator lodged a proceeding in the district court under sections 1423 and 1424, Comp. St. 1922, to obtain license to sell the lands here in question to pay the aforesaid allowed Kansas claims; the same being Clark v. Robinson, p. 306, post, a proceeding in rem, which was argued and submitted to us at the same time as the instant case, and action had therein as herein indicated as to this instant proceeding.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
228 N.W. 852, 119 Neb. 285, 1930 Neb. LEXIS 9, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robinson-v-clark-neb-1930.