Sweesy v. Hoy

272 Ill. App. 346, 1933 Ill. App. LEXIS 143
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedNovember 21, 1933
DocketGen. No. 36,140
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 272 Ill. App. 346 (Sweesy v. Hoy) 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
Sweesy v. Hoy, 272 Ill. App. 346, 1933 Ill. App. LEXIS 143 (Ill. Ct. App. 1933).

Opinion

Mr. Presiding Justice Sullivan

delivered the opinion of the court.

By this writ of error,' Anna E. Sweesy (hereinafter referred to as complainant), administratrix of the estate of Harry M. Hess, deceased, and guardian of the estate of Harry M. Hess, Jr., seeks to reverse a decree of the superior court dismissing complainant’s original bill for want of equity and granting Mary Olive Hess, one of the defendants and cross complainant (hereinafter referred to as cross complainant), relief as prayed in her cross-bill. Alfred C. Hoy, Carl D. Baker, John L. Hess, Union Bank of Chicago, and the Chicago Title & Trust Company, were also made defendants by the original bill of complaint.

The bill alleged that in January, 1923, Martin J. Ahern conveyed certain lands described to the Chicago Title & Trust Company, trustee, under a trust agreement that the trustee would hold for the ultimate use and benefit of Carl D. Baker a 5/10 interest; Alfred C. Hoy a 3/10 interest; John L. Hess a 1/10 interest, and Harry M. Hess a 1/10 interest; that the deed in trust recited that it was understood between the parties that the interest of each and every beneficiary, and of persons claiming under them, should consist solely of a power of direction to deal with the title to the property and the right to receive the proceeds from rentals and sales, and that such right in the avails of the property should be deemed personal property, and be assignable as such, and in case of the death of a beneficiary his interest should pass to his executor or administrator, and not to his heirs; that the beneficiary should have no right, title or interest in any portion of the real estate, as such, but only an interest in the proceeds, it being the intention to vest the full legal and equitable title in the trustee; that Harry M. Hess died October 1, 1923, and left Harry M. Hess, Jr., surviving as his only child; that October 3, 1923, Carl D. Baker, Alfred C. Hoy and John L. Hess, the surviving beneficiaries, requested the Chicago Title & Trust Company, in writing, to convey the title to one George T. Preschern, which the trustee did, and on the same day Preschern conveyed the property to the Union Bank of Chicago under a trust agreement similar to the one under which the Chicago Title & Trust Company held the property, except that Harry M. Hess was not mentioned as a beneficial owner, but Mary Olive Hess was declared to be the owner of an undivided 1/10 interest; that the conveyances from the Chicago Title & Trust Company to Preschern, and from Preschern to the Union Bank of Chicago, were fraudulent as to the heirs and creditors of Harry M. Hess and made for the purpose of diverting the 1/10 beneficial interest from the estate of Harry M. Hess, deceased; and prayed for a decree declaring said 1/10 interest to be the property of the heirs at law of Harry M. Hess, for an accounting, injunctional and general equitable relief.

The answers of Alfred C. Hoy, Carl D. Baker, John L. Hess, the Union Bank of Chicago, and the Chicago Title & Trust Company, admitted the several conveyances as charged, but denied that Harry M. Hess had any interest in the real estate and asserted that the conveyances were made for no other purpose than to convey the legal title to the Union Bánk of Chicago to be held in trust for the benefit of Carl D. Baker, Alfred C. Hoy, John L. Hess and Mary Olive Hess, the equitable owners, and that Mary Olive Hess claims the entire beneficial interest in the undivided 1/10 of the property in her own right as the purchaser of same out of her separate estate.

The answer of Mary Olive Hess admits the conveyance in trust to the Chicago Title &i Trust Company by Ahern, and the execution of the declaration of trust in which Harry M. Hess was named as beneficiary; the transfer to Preschern after the death of Harry M. Hess, and by him to the Union Bank of Chicago in trust, and the execution by that hank of its declaration of trust in which Mary Olive Hess was named a beneficiary in place of Harry M. Hess, after Ms demise. Her answer denied that Harry M. Hess had any interest in the property.

The amended cross-bill of Mary Olive Hess alleged that on or about January 11, 1923, she entered into a verbal agreement with the cross defendants Carl D. Baker, John L. Hess and Alfred C. Hoy, that they would together purchase the real estate described in the bill and would severally advance the purchase price as follows: Carl D. Baker 5/10 thereof; Alfred C. Hoy 3/10; John L. Hess 1/10 and Mary Olive Hess 1/10; that in pursuance of said verbal agreement cross complainant placed in the hands of Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy, out of her own personal, separate and undivided funds $5,000, as a part of the purchase price of her undivided 1/10 interest in the real estate, Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy then and there agreeing to pay the remaimng 9/10 portion of the purchase price in accordance with the proportions above set forth; that Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy entered into negotiations with Oris P. Van Sweringen, Otto Miller and Ralph Van Vechten, the owners of the property who held title in the name of the Calumet Trust Company, for the purchase of the real estate in accordance with said verbal agreement; that Carl D. Baker and John L. Hess caused an agreement in writing dated January 12, 1923, to be entered into between the vendor and themselves as the ostensible purchasers; that the agreement was for the use and benefit pro rata' of the cross complainant and Baker, John L. H§ss and Hoy, in proportion to that part of the purchase price contributed and to be contributed by each respectively; that at the time of the execution of this agreement Baker and John L. Hess paid the vendor $15,000 earnest money, which was contributed in proportion as follows: $7,500 or 5/10 part thereof by Carl D. Baker; $4,500 or 3/10 part thereof by Alfred C. Hoy; $1,500 or 1/10 part thereof by John L. Hess; and the remaining $1,500 or 1/10 part thereof by cross complainant; and that thereby all of the said real estate and the proceeds arising or to arise therefrom became and were, and ever since have been, impressed with a resulting trust for the use and benefit of cross complainant, Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy, in accordance with their respective interests therein.

It further alleged that on or about March 11, 1923, Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy paid the vendor, on account of the purchase price, the further sum of $35,000 as follows: $17,500 or 5/10 by Baker; $10,500 or 3/10 by Hoy; $3,500 or 1/10 by John L. Hess, and the remaining $3,500 or 1/10 by cross complainant; that April 19, 1923, by arrangement between Baker, John L. Hess and Hoy, and the vendor, the legal title of the real estate was caused to be conveyed to the Chicago Title & Trust Company, by deed dated January 12, 1923, and recorded April 20, 1923; that the Chicago Title & Trust Company executed a certain deed of trust dated January 12, 1923, to secure the payment of the balance of the purchase price of $112,288, and concurrently executed a trust agreement, purporting to declare a trust in the proceeds of said real estate, and designated and named Harry M. Hess a beneficiary to the extent of an undivided 1/10 interest, instead of inserting therein the name of Mary Olive Hess as a beneficiary; that the cross complainant relied upon Baker, John L.

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272 Ill. App. 346, 1933 Ill. App. LEXIS 143, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sweesy-v-hoy-illappct-1933.