State ex rel. Ponath v. Muench

130 S.W. 282, 230 Mo. 236, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 207
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedJuly 20, 1910
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 130 S.W. 282 (State ex rel. Ponath v. Muench) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. Ponath v. Muench, 130 S.W. 282, 230 Mo. 236, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 207 (Mo. 1910).

Opinions

GRAVES, J.

This is an original action in prohibition. Relator was formerly Caroline E. Bircher. Tbe original petition was against Hon. Hugo Mnencb, Judge, and tbe St. Louis Trust Company, as respondents, but by order of this court other respondents were permitted to come in and defend. In tbe first place, preliminary order to show cause was granted by one of tbe judges of this court, and thereafter tbe order as to tbe volunteer respondents was made. To this order to show cause all of tbe respondents made return, whereupon relator moved for judgment on tbe pleadings and that tbe preliminary order in prohibition be made permanent. Tbe facts are largely of record and undisputed. These facts when stated obviate an analysis of tbe petition and answers.

Caroline E. Ponatb, formerly Caroline E. Bircber, was one of tbe beneficiaries of a will made by one Charles A. Bircber. By tbe terms of such will Fred F. Espencbied and George H. Steinberg were conveyed certain property to be held in trust for tbe said Caroline E. Bircber (now Ponatb) and others. To tbe February term of tbe circuit court of tbe city of St. Louis Fred F. Espencbied filed bis petition asking to be relieved of such trust and praying that a new trustee be named. From bis petition it appears that George H. Steinberg bad theretofore been permitted to resign and be bad been made tbe sole trustee.

Upon tbe filing of Espencbied’s petition each and every party interested, including Caroline E. Bircber (now Ponatb), entered their appearance and joined in tbe prayer of Espencbied to be relieved from tbe trust. Upon tbe petition of Espencbied and the answer of tbe interested parties, tbe court entered a decree in substance as follows: (1) that Espencbied was relieved from tbe trust obligations created by tbe will; (2) tbe Lincoln Trust Company was designated as bis successor; (3) an accounting was required by [242]*242Espenehied to his successor; (4) costs were adjudged to be paid by the estate. This judgment was entered on February 25, 1902. This seems to have ended the matter until October 20, 1902, when we find a record entry showing a report from the Lincoln Trust Company and petition to resign. Just following is a decree and judgment which is vital in the present proceeding. On October 22, 1902, the circuit court entered the following decree:

‘ ‘Now at this day come all of the defendants by their attorney, Henry Boemler,- Esq., and the Lincoln Trust Company, heretofore on the 25th day of February, 1902, appointed successor to the plaintiff, Frederick F. Espenehied, in the trust created under the last will and testament of Charles A. Bircher, and said Lincoln Trust Company presents to the court its report of its- administration of said trust estate since the date of its appointment, showing an expenditure by it of $127.38 more than the income received by it from the assets of said trust, and that it has incurred in the administration of said trust estate, the sum of $386.60 for court costs and legal services, and requesting that the sum of $200 be allowed it for its services, as trustee herein, and said Lincoln Trust Company also presents to the court its petition for leave to resign said trust, and the court, having heard and duly considered the same, and defendants by their said attorney consenting thereto, doth order, adjudge and decree that said Lincoln Trust Company be, and is hereby relieved of and from the trust in it vested and imposed under the last will and testament of Charles A. Bircher, deceased, and the decree of this court entered February 25, 1902, in this cause, and that said report be' and is hereby in all respects approved, and that said Lincoln Trust Company. for its services as trustee herein, be and is hereby allowed the sum of $200', and that it have credit against said trust estate of said sum of [243]*243$127.38, advanced by it, and $386.60, and that for all of said sums, aggregating $713.98, it have, and there is hereby declared in its favor, a lien against the assets of said trust estate in the hands of its successor; that it turn over to said' successor the possession of the real estate described in its said report, and stand, discharged.
“And the defendants, beneficiaries of said trust, by their said attorney, also present their petition to the court, praying the appointment of the defendant, Caroline Bircher, as the successor of said Lincoln Trust Company in the trust created under the will of said Charles A. Bircher, deceased, and the decree of this court entered March 2, 1889', mentioned in the petition herein, and the court having duly considered the same, doth order, adjudge and decree that said Caroline Bircher be and is hereby appointed the successor of said Lincoln Trust Company in said trust, and that. the title, estate and trust in and to the property described in the petition which was vested in and imposed upon said Lincoln Trust Company under the terms of said will and the decree of this court be and the same is hereby vested in and imposed upon said Caroline Bircher, and that said Caroline Bircher as such trustee, be and is hereby authorized and empowered to do and perform all things which might be done and performed by said Lincoln Trust Company or said Frederick F. Espenehied, under the terms of said will and said decrees of this court, subject, however, to the rights of said Lincoln Trust Company to be reimbursed for its services, expenses and outlays herein, as herein-before provided.
“And the court doth further order that before entering upon the performance of the duties of said' trust, said Caroline Bircher give bond in the sum of five thousand dollars, with sureties satisfactory to the beneficiaries of said trust to be approved by the court, and that she or her successor herein report to this [244]*244court annually on the first Monday of October, the condition of said trust estate, and give an account of her or his administration of the same. It is further ordered and adjudged that the costs of this proceeding be paid out of the said trust estate. Bond of Caroline Bireher, trustee, in sum of five thousand dollars, with the St. Louis Union Trust Company as surety, approved by the court and filed. ’ ’

It should he borne in mind that this decree was entered in the old case of Espenchied v. Caroline S. Bireher et ah, of which defendants Caroline E. Bireher was one. Under this decree Caroline E. Bireher (now Ponath)' qualified and for four years acted as trustee. The case was numbered in the circuit court throughout as No. 23449. At the June term, 1906', on June 15th, Daniel Dillon and B. E. Brewer withdrew as counsel for Caroline E. Ponath (formerly Bireher), and other beneficiaries filed their petition for the removal of the said Caroline E. Bireher (now Ponath) as trustee, and the court made an order to show cause.

June 19', 1906, the parties appeared in court and the hearing of the order to show cause was continued to June 21, 1906.

The next order is on July 2, 1906. At this date the complainants withdrew their petition for removal and Caroline E. Ponath resigned as trustee, and the Mercantile Trust Company was appointed as her successor. This decree, which is important, reads:

“Now at this day come again Caroline S. Bireher, Amelia W. Bireher and Mary A. Henner, by their attorneys, and comes also the trustee herein, Caroline E. Bireher, now Caroline E. Ponath, by her attorney, and thereupon it is ordered by the court that the resignation of said Caroline E.

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Bluebook (online)
130 S.W. 282, 230 Mo. 236, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 207, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-ponath-v-muench-mo-1910.