Smith v. Raubach

238 N.W. 314, 121 Neb. 703, 1931 Neb. LEXIS 213
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 9, 1931
DocketNos. 27806, 27808
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 238 N.W. 314 (Smith v. Raubach) 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
Smith v. Raubach, 238 N.W. 314, 121 Neb. 703, 1931 Neb. LEXIS 213 (Neb. 1931).

Opinion

Good, J.

These two appeals are from the same judgment but by different parties. The action from which the appeals were taken was, in part, one to compel completion of performance of an alleged oral contract and, in part, for specific performance of the same contract.. The alleged contract was between the plaintiff and Adolph Svoboda, now deceased. Defendants are the heirs-at-law of Svoboda and the administrators of his estate,' together with other parties to the commercial paper involved in this action.

Plaintiff alleged that in June, 1925, Svoboda “proposed to plaintiff that she should look after his home for him by keeping it in order and doing his scrubbing and laundry work, and that she further furnish him meals at her house as he might require them, and that she generally look out for his welfare and care for him and nurse him if necessary until the time of his death, and that in return he would convey to plaintiff his residence heretofore described and further give or bequeath to plaintiff sufficient of his personal estate to care for her during the remainder of her lifetime. In this connection plaintiff avers that the exact amount of personalty promised to her by said Svoboda was not stated but that he did offer her and promise her on sundry occasions during the remainder of the year 1925, and thereafter, the exact dates plaintiff being now [705]*705unable to state, that he would give her enough so ‘she would be well taken care of,’ that he would ‘leave her enough to keep her for the rest of her life,’ that he would ‘leave her more than half of his estate,’ that he would ‘leave her all of his estate,’ and plaintiff avers that said Svoboda stated and represented to her that he was possessed of personal property of the value of from $25,000 to $30,000 and that said statements were true. Plaintiff avers that by said statements she was led to believe and did believe that said Svoboda was offering her his residence and not less than $12,500 additional of personalty and probably much more and so believing she accepted said offers of said Adolph Svoboda and proceeded to furnish his meals for him as he desired them which was about half of the, time, and to look after and scrub and cleanse his dwelling and to do his laundry work for him and to care for his garden and to mow his lawn and to see that he was cleaned and bathed if occasion required which became more and more frequent and during the last year of his life required almost daily attention on the part of plaintiff because of weaknesses of advanced age on the part of said Svoboda, by reason of which many of his personal habits became those of a small child.”

Plaintiff further averred that on September 15, 1928, Svoboda, in fulfilment of his promise, gave and delivered to plaintiff a promissory note and five certificates of deposit, in all of which Svoboda was designated as payee; that the face of the promissory note was $1,500, and that the aggregate amount of the certificates was $13,772; that Svoboda neglected to assign or indorse the promissory note and the certificates of deposit. Plaintiff prayed that the court order said certificates and note to be duly assigned to her and for a decree requiring the conveyance to plaintiff of Svoboda’s residence property.

The banks issuing the certificates of deposit and the makers of the promissory note were made parties, and each answered, admitting the indebtedness and a willingness to pay the obligations to whomsoever might be determined to be lawfully entitled thereto. The children of Mr. Svoboda [706]*706and his administrators denied the making of the oral contract and averred that Svoboda was mentally incompetent to make the contract, and denied that the certificates of deposit and promissory note were delivered by Svoboda to the plaintiff.

The trial court found for plaintiff on the question that such a contract had been entered into; found and determined that $6,500 was sufficient to keep her for the remainder of her life; and found specifically that the certificates of deposit and note were not delivered to plaintiff by Svoboda with the intention of conveying title to her. From the judgments entered upon the findings, plaintiff perfected an appeal, and the children of Svoboda and the administrators of his estate have also perfected a separate appeal.

This court has on numerous occasions held that contracts of the character of that involved in this appeal will be upheld and enforced if they are established by evidence that is clear, convincing and satisfactory. Among the many authorities so holding are the following: Labs v. Labs, 92 Neb. 378; Overlander v. Ware, 102 Neb. 216; Powers v. Norton, 103 Neb. 761; Remaly v. Sweet, 106 Neb. 327; McEntarffer v. Payne, 107 Neb. 169; Young v. Gillen, 108 Neb. 311; Hajek v. Hajek, 108 Neb. 503. The principal question involved herein is: Does the evidence meet these requirements? The record is voluminous, and only a summary of the facts can be set forth herein.

Adolph Svoboda was of Bohemian birth. He had lived in Knox county for a great many years and had acquired and accumulated considerable holdings of land and money. He was twice married. By his first marriage there were eleven children, two of whom died in childhood or infancy, and nine survived him. His first wife died in 1915. Some time thereafter he contracted another matrimonial alliance, which was terminated in divorce proceedings. From the record it appears that practically all of his holdings of land and personal property were acquired by the assistance of his first wife and their children; that the children worked upon the farms as soon as they were able and con[707]*707tinued to do so until they had attained the age of 17 years,, or upwards; that they were required to work in the fields until after cornpicking in the autumn, and to quit school as soon as spring work on the farm began. Apparently, none of the children acquired any education reaching beyond the fifth grade. It appears that Svoboda was saving, economical, almost penurious; that to his children, who are all now grown, he gave nothing of any consequence save to one son, to whom he gave 280 acres of land, upon condition that the son would pay to him annually during the remainder of his life the sum of $400, and he also sold to the son 200 acres more at the price at which he had purchased, and which was perhaps much less than its actual value at the time that he sold to the favored son.

Some time in 1925 Svoboda purchased a small home in the city of Norfolk, consisting of a lot and a four-room cottage, without any modern conveniences therein. This house was adjacent to that owned by plaintiff. It appears that, at the time, plaintiff was keeping some boarders, and that, within a few weeks after Svoboda moved into his new home, he took some meals at plaintiff’s house. Plaintiff’s son testified that, within two or three weeks after he came there, Svoboda proposed to his mother that she furnish him meals as he should need them, and care for him and look after his home; that his mother at first did not accept because she was contemplating moving to Ohio, to care for an invalid sister, but that a few days later the subject was renewed between Svoboda and plaintiff and that he made the offer to give to plaintiff his home property and sufficient of his estate to take care of her for life, if she would undertake to furnish him his meals and look after him and care for his home. To some extent the wife of this son corroborated him.

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Related

Taylor v. Clark
10 N.W.2d 495 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1943)
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
238 N.W. 314, 121 Neb. 703, 1931 Neb. LEXIS 213, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-raubach-neb-1931.