Taylor v. Morgan

95 Ind. 456, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 222
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedMay 26, 1884
DocketNo. 11,292
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 95 Ind. 456 (Taylor v. Morgan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Taylor v. Morgan, 95 Ind. 456, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 222 (Ind. 1884).

Opinion

Howk, J.

The only error assigned by the appellant upon the record of this cause is the decision of the circuit court in sustaining appellee’s demurrer for the want of sufficient facts to his complaint.

The appellant, Charles Taylor, alleged in his complaint that he was the owner in fee and in possession of lot No. 17, in Drover’s third addition to the town of Huntington, in Huntington county; that he held such lot under a purchase and conveyance thereof, by deed of general warranty executed to him by Thomas L. Lucas, of the date of May 17th, 1878, said Lucas being then the owner thereof; that, prior to his said purchase, certain judgments had been taken in the Huntington Circuit Court against the said Lucas, the first in date being in favor of the Huntington Building2 Loan and Savings Association, the second in favor of one Milton Hendrix, who ” afterwards assigned his judgment to the appellee, John Morgan; that both of said judgments remained, the first in part and the second wholly, unpaid; that the first judgment provided that the sale of property, under execution or decree issued thereon, might be made without appraisement, while the second judgment did not contain any provision concerning appraisement; that the plaintiff in the first judgment, the Huntington, etc., Association, caused the appellant’s lot to be sold by the sheriff on May 7th, 1880, under a writ duly issued and levied thereon, to make the residue of its said judgment; that the appellee Morgan, as the assignee and holder of said second judgment, on February 8th, 1881, before the expiration of the year allowed by law for redemption from [458]*458such sheriff’s sale, redeemed the appellant’s lot from such sale by paying on account thereof, for the use of the first judgment plaintiff, who was the purchaser at such sheriff’s sale, the amount of the purchase-money paid, with interest and costs, being the aggregate sum of $430, and the balance due on such first judgment.

And the appellant further said that thereupon the appellee sued out an execution on the said second judgment, for his use as the assignee thereof, and caused the same to be levied by the sheriff of such county on appellant’s said lot; that the sheriff caused advertisement to be duly made of a sale under such levy, on June 24th, 1881, over appellant’s objections made at .the time in appellee’s presence and hearing; but the appellant averred that no appraisement whatever was made of the rents and profits of said lot, though such rents and profits were then of the annual value of $100; that the sheriff, on said day, made a pretended sale of appellant’s lot to the appellee, Morgan, who, on June 29th, 1881, procured a deed to be executed to him by the sheriff, and caused such deed to be recorded in the recorder’s office of such county on the same day, and then claimed to own such lot by virtue of such pretended sale and deed to him; which claim was adverse to the appellant and a cloud upon his title to said lot.

The appellant further averred that at the June term, 1881, of the court below, in a suit there pending, brought by him against the appellee and the sheriff of such county, for the purpose of determining appellant’s right to the benefit of certain improvements made by him upon such lot, as against the lien of said judgments, a judgment was rendered adverse to him, and thereupon he appealed said cause to the Supreme Court, and such appeal was there pending at the time the sheriff’s sale, sought to be set aside in this suit, was made; that such appeal was not determined in the Supreme Court until the — day of February, 1883, when it was decided adversely to the appellant, and if such decision had been in his favor, it would not have been necessary for him to bring this [459]*459suit for the protection of his rights; and that he brought this suit as soon after his said appeal was determined as the sessions of the court below would permit. Wherefore the appellant asked judgment setting aside said pretended sheriff’s .sale, and the sheriff’s deed executed in pursuance thereof, and that his title to his said lot be forever quieted in him, and for all other proper relief.

The record of this cause shows that the suit was commenced on the 9th day of March, 1883. The appellant’s complaint is very long, much longer, indeed, than was necessary, we think, for the proper statement of his case. But, as the case made requires an examination, and to some extent the ■construction, of the redemption laws of March 31st, 1879, and of April 11th, 1881, and as we have reached the conclusion .that the complaint is insufficient, we have deemed it proper, and, perhaps, due the appellant, that we should give in this opinion a full and complete summary of the facts stated and relied upon as constituting his supposed cause of action. It will be observed that the appellant makes.no objection in his complaint to the sale of his lot by the sheriff to the Huntington Building, etc., Association, nor to the redemption of the lot from such sale thereof by the appellee, Morgan; indeed, we fail to find any objection by the appellant in his complaint to the action of the appellee in suing out an execution upon the Hendrix judgment, of which, he was the owner and holder, .as alleged, by assignment thereof, or to the levy of such execution by the sheriff upon the appellant’s lot.

The first matter of which appellant complained in stating his cause of action was, that “ the sheriff caused advertisement to be duly made of a sale under said levy, on the 24th day of June, 1881, over the objection of the plaintiff made .at the time, in the presence and hearing of defendant.” We are not informed by the appellant, either in his complaint or in the brief of his counsel, what objection was made to the due advertisement of the sale of his lot, or what was the ground of such objection.

[460]*460The next matter of which complaint is made by the appellant is thus stated: “ But plaintiff avers that no appraisement, whatever was made of the rents and profits of said lot, though, such rents and profits are, and then were, of the annual value-off $100; and said sheriff, on said day, made a pretended sale-of plaintiff’s'said lot to the defendant Morgan, who, on June 29th, 1881, procured a deed to be executed to him by such sheriff, and, on the same day, caused said deed to be recorded in the office of the recorder of said county, and now claims to own said lot by virtue of such pretended sale and deed to-him, which claim is adverse to plaintiff, and is a cloud upon his title to his said lot.”

The facts last quoted are those upon which the appellant, ■claims that he is entitled to have the sheriff’s deed to the appellee set aside, as a cloud upon the title to his lot. Of these-alleged facts, the one chiefly relied upon is that no appraisement was made of the rents and profits of the lot before the-sale thereof by the sheriff to the appellee. The complaint shows that the appellee’s redemption of the lot from the sheriff ’s sale thereof to the Huntington Building, etc., Association, was made on the 8th day of February, 1881, at which time the law of this State for the redemption of real property,, etc., from sheriff’s sales thereof, was the act of March 31st, 1879. Acts 1879, p. 176. When the sheriff sold such lot to the appellee, on the 24th day of June, 188.1, the redemption act of April 11th, 1881, which was in force from its passage, was a law of this State. This latter act contained no-repealing clause or section; on the contaary, the last section of such act (section 778, R. S.

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15 L.R.A. 277 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1891)

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Bluebook (online)
95 Ind. 456, 1884 Ind. LEXIS 222, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-v-morgan-ind-1884.