Schneider v. Schneider

37 N.E.2d 911, 312 Ill. App. 59, 1941 Ill. App. LEXIS 591
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedNovember 28, 1941
DocketGen. No. 41,303
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 37 N.E.2d 911 (Schneider v. Schneider) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Schneider v. Schneider, 37 N.E.2d 911, 312 Ill. App. 59, 1941 Ill. App. LEXIS 591 (Ill. Ct. App. 1941).

Opinion

Mr. Presiding Justice Scanlan

delivered the opinion of the court.

An action for separate maintenance and injunction brought by Loretta J. Schneider, plaintiff, against George A. Schneider, defendant. The complaint also made the following corporations defendants: The

Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago (hereinafter called the “Bank”), Continental Illinois Safe Deposit Company, The Northern Trust Company, American Tobacco Company, American Snuff Company, American Telephone and Telegraph Company (hereinafter called the ‘ ‘ Telephone Company”), George W. Helme Company, Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company (hereinafter called “Liggett & Myers”), P. Lorillard Company (hereinafter called “Lorillard”), and United States Tobacco Company.

At the time the complaint was filed an affidavit of nonresidence was also filed, which alleged that the last known address of George A. Schneider, the principal defendant, a lawyer, who had practiced at the Chicago bar for years, was % American Express Company, Paris, France. Since the commencement' of the proceedings he has remained outside of the jurisdiction of the court. He was served by publication at his last known address, % American Express Company, Paris, France. An attempt was also made to serve him, at the same address, with copies of the summons, complaint and injunction, but these documents were returned to the Clerk of the Superior court marked “Left without address,” “Return to sender.” A witness in behalf of plaintiff testified, before the Special Commissioner, that she later mailed copies of the said documents to Schneider, at the same address, in a plain envelope with the return address of Tuohy & Fortune, and that that letter has never been returned to the return address; that she mailed all notices and copies of orders and petitions to Schneider and that “these have never been returned”; that copies of all subsequent pleadings filed by plaintiff were mailed to Schneider at the same address and were not returned. The evidence clearly shows that Schneider knew of the proceedings. He did not, however, see fit to file an appearance in the cause.

The present appeal is prosecuted by Liggett & Myers from an order entered directing defendants Telephone Company, Lorillard and Liggett & Myers, and each of them, to pay to the Commissioners theretofore appointed all sums of money then held by said defendants and in their possession and control, which were due and owing to the principal defendant, within five days from the date of the order, and that “upon the payment of said sums they accept the receipt of said Commissioners for said sums so paid and that said sums so received by said Commissioners be paid to the plaintiff, Loretta J. Schneider, on account of the indebtedness due her from the defendant, George A. Schneider, and which now amounts to $2,000 and that due credit be given on account of said indebtedness to the defendant George A. Schneider for the sums so paid.” Defendants Lorillard and Telephone Company complied with the order.

The complaint alleged that the principal defendant, Schneider, was the owner of real estate, situated in Cook county, Illinois, that he had money in the Bank, and held stock in the Telephone Company, Lorillard, Liggett & Myers and other corporations; alleged grounds for the issuance of the injunction against Schneider, the Bank, Telephone Company, Lorillard, Liggett & Myers and other corporations; prayed that Schneider’s real estate, money, stocks and bonds be sequestered and that he be enjoined from selling, assigning, hypothecating, transferring, encumbering or otherwise disposing of his stocks and bonds in the Bank, Telephone Company, Lorillard, Liggett & Myers and other corporations, and also any money in the various accounts held in the name of Schneider; prayed that the Bank, Telephone Company, Lorillard, Liggett & Myers and other corporations be enjoined from permitting Schneider to transfer, assign, hypothecate, sell, encumber or otherwise dispose of stocks in the books and records of said corporations. After the injunction issued the Bank, Telephone Company, Lorillard and Liggett & Myers filed general appearances and answers to the complaint.

On June 27, 1939, plaintiff filed a petition alleging that Schneider had not made payments of $500 per month as directed by the court, and requesting the entry of an order allowing her further solicitor’s fees and directing Telephone Company, Lorillard and Liggett & Myers to pay over to the clerk of the court all dividends due or which might thereafter become due to Schneider. Liggett & Myers answered the petition and denied that Schneider receives dividends and other payments in stock or in cash on account of his ownership of the preferred stock of Liggett & Myers, and averred that from and after the entry of the order enjoining Liggett-& Myers from paying dividends on said stock to Schneider, it had complied in every respect with the terms of the injunctional order and withheld payment of dividends on the stock. On November 1, 1939, the Commissioners petitioned for an order directing Telephone Company, Lorillard and Liggett & Myers to pay over to them dividends dne to Schneider in the sums of $107, $200 and $525, respectively. Liggett & Myers answered the petition and alleged, inter alia, that it had in its possession $525 that was then due and payable to Schneider. The answer also alleged that Schneider was not served with a summons in the cause and that to enforce any order directing appellant to pay over any money or property to the Commissioners, or to any other person, except to Schneider, would deprive Schneider of his property without due process of law; that the court was without jurisdiction to order Liggett & Myers to pay any moneys then due to Schneider to the Commissioners until Schneider had been personally served with a summons, or until he had entered his appearance. Liggett & Myers also set up affirmative matters in its answer, alleging the wilful failure of plaintiff to demand a hearing on the merits of her case and the possibility of its being subjected to liability to Schneider in other jurisdictions in the event that the relief prayed for in the petition in question should be granted.

Plaintiff’s theory of the ease is that the proceedings are in rem or quasi in rem; that even though the principal defendant has not been subjected to personal service, the court had power to proceed against the property of the principal defendant located within its jurisdiction and to direct that such property be paid over to plaintiff for her support, maintenance and attorneys’ fees; and that dividends on the stock of Liggett & Myers of which the principal defendant is the holder of record, though declared after the proceedings were commenced, constituted a res within the jurisdiction of the court, since Liggett & Myers, at the time of the commencement of the proceedings, was qualified to do and was doing business in Illinois.

Appellant, Liggett & Myers, contends that the court was without jurisdiction to entertain the petition on which the order appealed from was based, since there has been no personal service on the principal defendant; that a proceeding for separate maintenance is statutory and purely in personam and does not fall within the purview of section 14 of the Civil Practice Act [Jones Ill. Stats. Ann.

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Bluebook (online)
37 N.E.2d 911, 312 Ill. App. 59, 1941 Ill. App. LEXIS 591, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/schneider-v-schneider-illappct-1941.