Shroff v. Deaton

220 S.W.2d 489, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1754
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 31, 1949
DocketNo. 6441
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 220 S.W.2d 489 (Shroff v. Deaton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Shroff v. Deaton, 220 S.W.2d 489, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1754 (Tex. Ct. App. 1949).

Opinion

LINCOLN, Justice.

The appellants, children and heirs at law of K. D. Deaton by a former marriage, brought this suit against the appellee to recover one-half of a sum of money on deposit with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association. The parties will be referred to as in the trial court and the Kil-gore Federal Savings and Loan Association will be referred to as the Association. Defendant was the surviving wife of K. D. Deaton, deceased. After the suit was filed the association filed its bill of interpleader and deposited one-half of the fund in the registry of the court, this being the fund in controversy. Plaintiffs’ petition alleged that the money on deposit with the association was the community property of the deceased and of the defendant, and that the plaintiffs as heirs at law of deceased were entitled to one-half of it. The deceased left a written will which had been probated, but it was admitted by the parties that the will did not dispose of the fund on deposit with the association.

The case was tried before the court without a jury. The judgment entered denied plaintiffs any recovery and allowed an attorney’s fee to be paid to the association out of the fund deposited in the registry of the court. There is no appeal from that part of the judgment allowing attorney’s fees 'but the plaintiffs appeal from the judgment denying them recovery for one-half of the fund, as sued for in their petition.

After the judgment had been entered the court’ filed its findings of fact and conclusions of law, as requested by the plaintiffs. The findings material to this decision are as follows:

“5. At the time of the death of K. D. Deaton in October, 1947, there was deposited to'the joint account of K. D. Deaton and wife, Melanie Selzer Deaton, the sum of $9,919.22, with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association, which amount of money is the basis of this suit.

“6. That on or about May 1, 1946, the said K. D. Deaton and Melanie Selzer Dea-ton entered into a written contract with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association for the purchase of Optional savings shares; that the said written agreement provided that the purchase was to he held in joint tenancy by the said K. D. Deaton and Melanie Selzer Deaton, and further provided the right of survivorship, a copy of said instrument being in exact form as follows:

“ ‘No. 333 Date SOI 1946

“ ‘Names K. D. or Mrs. Melanie Deaton

“ T hereby subscribe for Optional Savings shares in the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association subject to the laws of the United States, the rules and regulations of the Federal Home Loan Bank Board and the charter and by-laws of the association as they now are or as they may hereafter be amended. It is understood and agreed that the shares hereby subscribed for are issued by the association, and all moneys paid or that may hereafter be paid thereon are paid by the undersigned, and such shares together with all accumulations thereon are held by the association for our account, as joint tenants with right of sur-vivorship and not as tenants in common, and that said shares may be resold subject to the by-laws of the association, by either before or after the death of either, and [491]*491either is authorized to pledge the same as collateral security to a loan.

(Signed) K. D. Deaton, Mrs. Melanie Deaton.

(For a joint account)’

“7. That a passbook was issued in the names of both parties, namely K. D. Deaton and Melanie Selzer Deaton, for the purpose of making deposits and withdrawals and that the withdrawals and/or deposits could be made either with or without the presenting of the passbook.

“8. The said K. D. Deaton did, a short time before his death, make a gift of all of his interest in said shares of stock or money on deposit with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association to Melanie Selzer Deaton, and delivered at that time the passbook heretofore referred to, to said Mielanie Selzer Deaton.”

The court’s conclusions of law are as follows:

“2. That after the death of K. D. Deaton in October, 1947, his interest in the account passed to Melanie Selzer Deaton under the terms of the contract with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association, and •that said whole interest should vest in the survivorship of the two, such provisions being valid.

“3. That K. D. Deaton made a valid gift of his interest in the account to Melanie Selzer Deaton prior to his death and with it delivered the passbook heretofore referred to.

“4. In connection therewith, the court further finds that both parties had a legal right to withdraw their savings in accordance with the terms of the contract with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association.

“5. That all the money deposited with the Kilgore Federal Savings and Loan Association, except $3,000 placed therein by Melanie Selzer Deaton as her separate property, was made by the joint efforts of both K. D. Deaton and Melanie Selzer Deaton, and thereby became community property.”

No statement of facts has been brought up on appeal. The first point presented for reversal is that the trial court erred in finding that a valid gift of the portion of the estate involved in this suit had been completed, as found in the eighth paragraph of the court’s findings of fact. It is a well established rule in this State that where there is no statement off facts, the findings of 'fact by the trial court in cases tried without a jury are conclusive on the reviewing court. 3 Tex.Jur. p. 557; Custard v. Flowers, Tex.Civ.App., 14 S.W.2d 109.

In 3 Tex.Jur., p. 540, it is said: “In the absence of a statement of facts the appellate court cannot determine questions depending upon the sufficiency off the evidence; and hence cannot consider assignments of error to the effect that the evidence is insufficient to support the findings, verdict or judgment, or that they are contrary to the evidence.”' .

' The foregoing statement is supported by abundant authority in this State.

Since there is no statement of facts, we are bound by the findings of the trial court, and its finding of fact in this respect must be adopted as the finding of this court.

Appellants’ brief directs our attention to the-fourth paragraph off the conclusions of law. There the trial court found that both parties had a legal right “to withdraw their savings in accordance with the terms of the contract” with the association. Appellants urge that such conclusion negatives a valid and completed gift from the donor to the appellee. The contract is dated in 1946. The gift is alleged to have been made about two months before Deaton’s death which occurred in October, 1947. The trial court’s fact finding was that the gift took place “a short time before his death.” The conclusion of the court is that under the terms of the contract with the association either party thereto1 had a right to withdraw the funds. This is a conclusion of law, and whether correct or. incorrect, it is not necessary to. decide. The finding of fáct that the gift was made by Deaton to his wife a short time before his death is binding upon this court, and this finding is not affected by the trial court’s conclusion of law that under the terms of the contract with the association either party could withdraw the funds on deposit. We see [492]

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220 S.W.2d 489, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1754, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/shroff-v-deaton-texapp-1949.