Smith v. Smith

187 S.W.2d 116, 1945 Tex. App. LEXIS 663
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 23, 1945
DocketNo. 14677.
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 187 S.W.2d 116 (Smith v. Smith) 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
Smith v. Smith, 187 S.W.2d 116, 1945 Tex. App. LEXIS 663 (Tex. Ct. App. 1945).

Opinion

SPEER, Justice.

Plaintiff .Garland Smith filed suit against his wife Lessie Smith for divorce and obtained under that petition a temporary restraining order preventing her from returning to or molesting the premises which had previously been their home and from doing personal harm to plaintiff’s mother who resided in the home.

Defendant Lessie Smith denied all of plaintiff’s alleged grounds for divorce and the asserted facts under which he procured the restraining order. She filed a cross action against plaintiff for divorce and sought a judgment against him for funds paid on an indebtedness against plaintiff’s separate real estate and for her half of community funds paid thereon which payments enhanced the value of the real estate to a specified amount. She interpleaded *118 Patsy Smith, the daughter of plaintiff, alleging that she was asserting some sort of claim to the land. She also interpleaded the bondsmen of plaintiff on the restraining order bond and sought judgment against plaintiff for damages arising from the wrongful issuance of the writ and against plaintiff alone for attorney’s fees.

Trial was to a jury on special issues. The verdict in effect was: (1) Lessie Smith was not guilty of the things alleged by Garland Smith as grounds for divorce. (2) Garland Smith was guilty of the grounds alleged by Lessie Smith in her cross action for divorce. (3) It was just and right for Lessie Smith to have possession of the 55 acre farm as a home. (4) The duration of that possession and use by Lessie Smith should be so long as she remained single, not to exceed ten years. (5) Garland Smith had executed and delivered to Patsy Smith a deed to the 55 acres prior to the marriage of plaintiff and defendant. (6) Lessie Smith had paid $100 out of her separate funds on the indebtedness against the 55 acres of land, and it has not been repaid to her. (8) The value of the 55 acres has been enhanced $1000 by the expenditure of community funds during the marriage relation. (9 and 10) Lessie Smith was damaged by the issuance and service of the writ under the temporary restraining order in the sum of $100. (11) A reasonable attorney fee for services rendered to Lessie Smith was $250.

The court entered judgment for Lessie Smith on the jury verdict. The court found by the judgment that all parties, including the interpleaded parties, appeared and announced ready for trial. That Garland Smith and Lessie Smith were duly married and moved on to the 55 acre farm in July 1942 with the intent to make it their homestead. That said land was the separate property of Garland Smith and that he had previously deeded said land to his daughter Patsy Smith with a provision in the conveyance that it should not become absolute until the daughter was 42 years of age; that the daughter was 24 years old at the date of trial; that under the circumstances Patsy Smith is not entitled to any right of possession until more than ten years from the date of the judgment; that it appears to the court just and right that Lessie Smith should have the exclusive use and occupancy of the premises for a period of ten years, and that Garland Smith and Lessie Smith owned $150 worth of Defense Bonds; that the evidence is full and saisfactory for the judgment herein rendered.

It was decreed that Lessie Smith be divorced from Garland Smith; that Lessie Smith recover of and from Garland Smith and his interpleaded sureties damages of $100 for the wrongful issuance of the writ under the temporary restraining order. The exclusive use and possession of the 55 acre tract of land was awarded to Lessie Smith.

It was further decreed that Lessie Smith recover of Garland Smith $580, fixing a lien on the land to secure its payment as against Garland Smith and Patsy Smith, and ordering the lien foreclosed and the land sold as under execution. There was further recovery by Lessie Smith against Garland Smith of $250 as attorney’s fees in her behalf. Interest at six per cent per annum from date of the judgment on each item was allowed. There was a further recovery of certain household effects about which there seems to be no controversy.

Garland Smith alone moved for new trial, and when overruled he excepted, gave notice of and perfected this appeal by filing his bond; no supersedeas bond was filed. Garland Smith is appellant and Lessie Smith is appellee.

We pause just here to say that subsequent to the filing in this cause of the record of the proceedings below, appellee has asked to be allowed to file what she terms a supplemental transcript. The supplement accompanied the motion and Was ordered filed. The substance of the supplemental transcript is a certified copy of an execution and the officer’s return thereon, issued out of- the trial court subsequent to the date on which the motion for new trial was overruled and prior to filing the appeal bond. The execution recites the three items of $100, $250 and $580, making up the judgment recovered by appellee. The officer to whom it was addressed was commanded to levy upon the goods and chattels of Garland Smith and cause to be made the sum of $100. The same language is used in the instrument to the officer, relative to making the sum of $580. These are two of the items in the judgment. Nothing is sajd in the order to the officer concerning the item of $250 awarded as attorney’s fees. The return indicates that all requisites of law had been complied with and that, by virtue of the execu *119 tion, he levied upon and sold the 55 acres of land to Lessie Lola Smith (appellee), she being the highest bidder, for $250. Appellee contends here that such execution, levy and sale has rendered moot “most of the points of error, alleged by appellant.” But in view of the nature of appellant’s points of error, we are unwilling to say they have become moot; under the circumstances. Five out of the nine points of error relied upon, in one way or another, raise the question of appellant’s homestead, and the right of the court to fix a lien on it to secure the repayment to appellee in reimbursement to her for funds to which she may have been entitled. Appellant is apparently serious in his contentions of the homestead rights. If the land was his homestead the levy of the execution thereon would be subj ect to attack. It is contended by appellee that the execution was issued and levied to satisfy only $350 of the money judgment, which items were not secured by the lien fixed by the court, and that the question of whether or not it was error for the court to fix a lien on the 55 acres to secure the $580 has become immaterial on this appeal. We have concluded that we will, consider appellant’s grounds of appeal but will express no opinion as to -the effect of the levy and sale.

Both of the principal actors in this case wanted a divorce; they got it and neither is dissatisfied with it. The appeal bond indicates that appellant does not appeal from the order granting the divorce. His complaints are only as to the judgment concerning the property interests of the parties.

First point of error complains because the court found that Patsy Smith was not entitled to any right or possession of the land until more than ten years after the date of the judgment (the period in which it was conditionally awarded to ap-pellee). The point as presented by appellant must be overruled for the reason Patsy Smith has not appealed from the judgment entered and appellant may not assign error in her behalf.

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Bluebook (online)
187 S.W.2d 116, 1945 Tex. App. LEXIS 663, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-smith-texapp-1945.