DocketNumber： 18,705
Citation Numbers： 130 N.E.2d 62, 127 Ind. App. 119
Judges： Bowen, Kelley, Royse
Filed Date： 11/17/1955
Status： Precedential
Modified Date： 8/7/2023
This case was originally appealed to the Supreme Court on the theory it was an appeal from an interlocutory decree denying appellant a temporary
The real questions presented by this appeal are, the rulings of the trial court in overruling the demurrer of appellant to the answer of appellees, and error of the trial court in sustaining appellees’ demurrer to the reply of appellant to said answer.
Appellees at the outstart contend appellant’s brief presents no question because, they assert, they have not set out in their brief certain exhibits which are necessary to fully present a question here. Our examination of appellant’s brief discloses there is no merit to this contention.
The pleadings of the parties in this case take up more than three hundred thirty printed pages of appellant’s brief. We deem it necessary only to generally summarize the substance of those which relate to the questions presented herein.
In the argument portion of her brief appellant accurately summarizes the fifteen paragraphs of her third amended and supplemental complaint as follows: (Hereinafter referred to as the complaint).
The “complaint shows that on May 26 and 27, 1921 John C. Barrett purchased from the then owners the real estate involved in this action under two written purchase contracts attached as Exhibits 1 and 2 to the Complaint. Under these purchase contracts, the then owners of the real estate agreed to sell and convey the same to Barrett as purchaser, who agreed to purchase said real estate at the stipulated price. These purchase contracts were not option contracts, but contained covenants*123 for the purchase and sale of said real estate which were binding upon both sellers and purchaser.
“The purchase contracts provided that the purchaser, Barrett, should have possession of said real estate and pay the taxes, discharge all liens, and insure the improvements thereon after May 1, 1921. The purchase contracts further provided that the sellers had on the respective dates of said contracts executed their warranty deeds conveying said real estate to the purchaser, same to be deposited with American Trust Company, along with an executed copy of the purchase contracts, ‘in escrow for the use of’ the purchaser with directions to the escrowee to deliver said warranty deeds to the purchaser upon payment of the full amount of the purchase price. Time was not made the essence of the purchase contracts.
“Paragraphs One and Two of the Complaint alleged that the purchaser, Barrett, was placed in exclusive possession of said real estate on May 26 and 27, 1921, and remained in possession thereafter for nearly twenty (20) years'; that said real estate was of special, peculiar and unique value to the purchaser for his use in conducting his hotel and tavern business thereon; that ‘during the year 1940’, the purchaser ‘duly assigned and conveyed all of his interests’ under said purchase contracts and ‘all of his right, title and interest in and to said real estate’ to appellant and ‘placed her in exclusive possession thereof’; that appellant retained such possession ‘down to the date of the filing of this action’; that in the years from 1923 to 1927 inclusive, the original sellers assigned and conveyed all of their interest in said real estate by general warranty deeds to American Trust Company, as trustee, ‘in trust for the use and benefit’ of the purchaser; that appellant ‘thus became the complete equitable owner in fee simple of said real estate by virtue of said assignment and conveyance to her from her assignor and predecessor in interest, said John C. Barrett’; that appellant ‘has never abandoned, transferred or conveyed her right, title and interest in and to said real estate and is now the equitable owner in fee simple thereof’ ; that the interest of the original owners under said purchase contracts devolved exclusively upon*124 appellees, Blakely and Wagner; that ‘The present parties to this action comprise all of the persons having any right, title, interest or other claim in or to said real estate’ or under said purchase contracts; that the purchaser (Barrett) and appellant paid the full purchase price of said real estate and ‘fully performed each and all of the other conditions, covenants and agreements which were required to be performed’ on their part under said purchase contracts; that the sellers had therefore ‘accepted and received during the period between the year 1921 and the filing of this action the full consideration to which they were entitled’ under said purchase contracts; that in the year 1945 and prior to the filing of this action, appellant demanded that said appellees, Blakely, Wagner and American Trust Company, as trustee, convey said real estate to appellant (except a part thereof previously conveyed to Barrett), the legal title to which ‘was then vested in American Trust Company, as trustee, for the use and benefit’ of appellant; that said appellees failed and refused so to do; and that appellant is entitled to specific performance and is without adequate remedy at law. Appellant prayed for a decree of specific performance and for a temporary and permanent injunction enjoining appellees from asserting any right, title or interest in or to said real estate (except the part previously conveyed to Barrett), and for general relief. . . .
“It was also alleged that appellant became sole owner of said real estate by virtue of the fact that John C. Barrett, the original purchaser, died unmarried and intestate on or about February 27, 1940; that American Trust Company was duly appointed the Administrator of his estate; that appellant is the only child and the sole heir-at-law, assignee, transferee and distributee entitled to all of his estate, real and personal, including his title to said real estate, and his interests under said purchase contracts; that American Trust Company, as Administrator, had completed and closed the administration of his estate and had been discharged; and that all of the real and personal property comprising said estate, including Barrett’s title to said real estate and interest therein under said purchase contracts, and also his beneficial interest un*125 der the escrow of the warranty deeds and trust of the legal title to said real estate of which American Trust Company was escrowee and trustee, passed by the operation of law to and vested exclusively in appellant as his sole heir-at-law”. (Our emphasis).
Said complaint also sought damages for breach of the purchase contracts, for recovery of overpayments in the purchase price of said real estate, and for recovery of usury.
It is further disclosed by the complaint that, of the real estate involved in this action, at the time the original contract of sale and purchase was made four-fifths was then owned by Fred Wagner and Lucius M. Wagner, Eva B. Wagner and Katherine B. Wagner, and one-fifth was owned by Ada Wagner Powers.
Exhibit I is a contract of sale and purchase between the owners of the four-fifths interest to John C. Barrett, and provides for the payment to said owners by Barrett the sum of $140,000.00 over a period of fifteen years. The contract provided the sellers had executed their warranty deed to Barrett to be deposited with the American Trust Company together with a copy of the contract to be held in escrow by said Trust Company to be delivered by it to said Barrett when he had fulfilled his obligations under the contract.
Exhibit II is a similar contract between the owner of the one-fifth interest and said Barrett for the sale and purchase of said interest for the sum of $35,000.00. It is essentially the same as the above Exhibit I except as to the purchase price.
The parties are agreed that these exhibits are purchase contracts and not options to purchase.
To appellant’s complaint appellees filed their answer in twenty paragraphs. The first fifteen paragraphs of said answer were of admission and denial under the rules.
Paragraph Seventeen of the answer avers, in substance, that on November 20, 1940 appellees and one Ada Wagner Thackery, now deceased, demanded that the Trust Company surrender possession of said real estate; that at said time the Trust Company had possession of said real estate as administrator of the Barrett estate and as Trustee for the benefit of said Barrett, his heirs and assigns, and as trustee for appellant who was a non-resident; that said Trust Company refused to surrender said real estate. These appellees and said Thackery commenced proceedings as Cause No. 61771 in the St. Joseph Superior Court Room 2 against said Trust Company as Administrator of the estate of John C. Barrett and as trustee for certain real estate; that in said cause the Trust Cotetpany in such capacities appeared and filed answers and a second amended cross-complaint; that on October 24, 1944, judgment was rendered against said Trust Company for the immediate
“And the court finds that the allegations of plaintiffs’ Complaint and Supplemental Complaint are true, and that the plaintiffs Catherine Delores Blakely and Lucius M. Wagner are the owners and entitled to the immediate possession of the real estate described in plaintiffs’ Complaint; and the court further finds that the defendants American Trust Company, as Administrator of the Estate of John Barrett, and American Trust Company, as Trustee of certain real estate, being the real estate hereinafter described, unlawfully hold possession of said described real estate and have unlawfully kept the plaintiffs out of the possession of same. It is, therefore, considered and adjudged by the Court that the plaintiffs are the owners in fee simple of the real estate described in the Complaint, which said real estate is located in the City of South Bend, County of St. Joseph, State of Indiana, to-wit:
“And it is, therefore, considered and adjudged by the Court that the plaintiffs recover of the defendants the possession of the said real estate.
“And the Court now finds against the cross-complaints American Trust Company, as Administrator of the Estate of John Barrett, and American Trust Company, as Trustee of certain real estate, on their Second Amended Cross-Complaint, and that the said cross-complainants take nothing on their Second Amended Cross-Complaint, and it is, therefore, considered and adjudged by the. Court that the cross-complaints take nothing by their Second Amended Cross-Complaint.
“It is further considered and adjudged by the Court that the plaintiffs recover of and from the defendants American Trust Company, as Adminis*128 trator of the estate of John Barrett and American Trust Company, as Trustee, their costs in this behalf paid, laid out and expenses, in the amount of
(Further on in this opinion we will have occasion to refer to some of the exhibits in that case.)
Paragraph Eighteen, by reference, incorporates twelve of the Exhibits in the transcript that is made a part of Paragraph Seventeen. It then avers that on October 23, 1923 Lucius M. Wagner, John C. Barrett and the American Trust Company executed an agreement for the sale from said Wagner to Barrett of one-fifth of said real estate; that on the 7th day of March, 1924 Catherine D. Wagner Blakely, John C. Barrett and the American Trust Company entered into a similar contract for one-fifth of said real estate. Each of these contracts provided that the sellers had by warranty deed conveyed all of their interest in said real estate to the Trust Company for the interests of the parties to said agreement as their interests may appear in accordance with the terms of the contracts.
It then avers that on June 9, 1925 Catherine Delores Blakely, Fred Wagner, Trustee, John C. Barrett, and the American Trust Company executed a further agreement in reference to this real estate. It was specifically provided in said agreement that if it is in conflict with the agreement of May 26, 1921, then the provisions of the 1921 contract shall prevail.
It is then averred that by reason of the contracts set out in this paragraph of complaint the contracts set out in appellant’s complaint are no longer in force and effect.
Paragraph Nineteen of said answer incorporates by reference the allegations of paragraphs Seventeen and Eighteen of appellees’ answer. It then avers that immediately after the commencement of said Cause No.
Paragraph Twenty incorporates by reference the allegations of Paragraphs Seventeen and Eighteen. It then avers that subsequent to the judgment in Cause No. 61771 the Trust Company as Trustee conveyed to these appellees the real estate involved herein; that thereafter this court entered judgment in this cause in favor of the Trust Company as trustee; that these appellees are in privity with the said Trust Company as Trustee and said judgment innures to their benefit.
At this point we believe it would be well to summarize certain of the exhibits referred to in the transcript in Cause No. 61771.
Exhibits 1 and 3 in said transcript are the original contracts referred to above as Exhibits 1 and 2 of appellant’s complaint.
Exhibit 4 in said transcript is the contract between Fred Wagner, John C. Barrett and the Trust Company entered into on the 29th day of October, 1923. By the terms of this contract Wagner agreed to sell his one-fifth interest in said property for the sum of $50,000 in specified biennial installments commencing November 1, 1928 and final payment to be made November 1, 1938. It specifies that Lucius M. Wagner, Eva B. Wagner, Catherine D. Wagner Blakely and Ada Wagner Power, brothers and sisters, are the owners of the other four-fifths of said real estate. In addition to said sum of
“It is further agreed that if the party of the second part shall make default in any of the payments required herein to be made to the party of the first part and shall continue in such default for a period of Ninety (90) days after written notice of such default, then the party of the first part may, at his election terminate this contract and demand from the American Trust Company a deed reconveying said property to him and he may retake and hold the possession of said real estate free and clear from all claims and demands from the party of the second part as in his first and former estate. In order, however, that the American Trust Company may know of such written notice to the party of the second part, a copy of said notice together with the manner of service thereon shall be given to the American Trust Company.
“The American Trust Company may act upon any notice that it believes to be genuine and shall become liable hereunder only for its own gross negligence and its signing and executing this agreement acknowledges its acceptance of the trust created in it, for the use and benefit of both the parties of the first and second parts.”
Exhibit 5 of said transcript is a contract between the same parties as those to the contract in Exhibit 4. It specifically provided Barrett made no binding agreement to pay any sum to any person, but that if he pay
Exhibit 7 of said transcript is a contract dated March 7, 1924 between Ada Wagner Power, John C. Barrett, and the Trust Company by which she agrees to sell her one-fifth interest in said real estate for the sum of $30,000 payable in nine annual installments beginning September 1, 1928 and ending September 1, 1936. This contract contains essentially the same conditions as those in Exhibit 4.
Exhibit 8 is a contract between Catherine Wagner Blakely, John C. Barrett, and the Trust Company for the sale of her interest in said real estate. This contract, except the price, has the same provisions as those in Exhibit 5.
Exhibit 9 is a similar contract to Exhibits 5 and 8, except as to the purchase price. Lucius Wagner is the seller in this agreement.
Exhibit 10 is an agreement of September 11, 1931 wherein Catherine Delores Blakely grants an extension of time to Barrett to make payments due under the contract. This contract provides Barrett is to comply with all the other terms of the original agreement.
Exhibit 11 is an agreement of April 8, 1932 between the same parties referred to in Exhibit 10 for an extension of time for payments.
Exhibit 12 is an agreement of November 1, 1933 between Catherine Delores Blakely, Ada Wagner Thackery and Lucius Wagner as vendors, John C. Barrett, vendee, and the Trust Company as Trustee. This con
Exhibit 13 is an agreement of September 11, 1931 between Lucius M. Wagner, John C. Barrett, and the Trust Company. It is an agreement granting Barrett an extension of time for the payments due pursuant to the agreement of June 9, 1925.
Exhibit 14 is an agreement of August, 1936 between Catherine Delores Blakely and Lucius Wagner as vendors, and John C. Barrett as vendee, and the Trust Company as Trustee. By the terms of this agreement the vendors waived all existing defaults of vendee on condition the entire income from said property be devoted to payment of taxes, insurance premiums, necessary repairs, expenses of operation, and interest on the purchase price. By the terms of this agreement vendee retained management, etc. of the property. It provided the manner in which the Trustee was to allocate funds received from vendee. It provided for a waiver of future defaults. It further provided vendee did not have the right to sell or assign his interest in said purchase contracts without the consent of vendor unless all delinquent principal, interest, taxes and other charges against the property were paid at the time of such sale or assignment; that in the event of vendee’s death or of the transfer of any of the vendee’s interest in said purchase contracts, the waiver herein made shall become void and said vendors shall have the right to declare a forfeiture of all vendee’s rights in or under any of the purchase contracts hereto entered into by the parties and to such action as may be necessary and proper to terminate said contracts. This agreement provided the contract of November 1, 1933 betv/een the parties is
Appellant filed her demurrer to the fifteenth to twentieth paragraphs of appellees’ second answer on the grounds that they do not constitute a defense to her complaint. The memorandum in supoprt of said demurrer avers, in substance, that probate proceedings in the estate of John Barrett constitute no defense because appellant’s title to the real estate was not therein involved but only the possession of said real estate during the limited period of administration, and said probate proceedings were not adversary to appellant. That the proceeding in Cause No. 61771 constitutes no defense to appellant’s action because it appears said proceedings were in ejectment and appellant was not a party to said action or in privity with any party to such proceedings. Therefore, said proceedings could not and did not determine any of the rights of appellant described in her complaint.
Final judgment in Cause No. 61771 (refers to sub-paragraph 4 of Paragraph seventeen of said answer) constitutes no defense because it appears from the face of said answer that the portion of said judgment which purported to adjudge the Trust Company as Trustee of said real estate was void on its face, because the Trust Company as Trustee of said real estate did not make any claim to be the owner of the real estate under the second amended cross-complaint filed by it, but on the contrary filed same as Administrator of the Barrett estate and did not allege it was either legal or equitable owner of said real estate but merely prayed the court to determine its rights and interests as such adminis
The final judgment in Cause No. 61771 was not a defense for the reason said judgment was in ejectment and related wholly to the possession of said real estate. Appellant was not a party to said cause nor in privity with any of the parties, etc.
The agreements referred to in rhetorical paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of the answer do not constitute an answer because all of said agreements tend to establish the liability of appellees and do not disclose they are non-liable.
The fact that appellant became informed of said Cause No. 61771 and knew that the estate of Barrett was insolvent, and during all the time she abandoned the property, made no effort to obtain possession of it, did not tender the Trust Company the sums due under the contract as alleged in rhetorical paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Paragraph nineteen, constitutes no defense for the reason that no facts are alleged to show appellant was under any obligation to intervene in Cause No. 61771, nor were said alleged failures on her part sufficient to cause her to become bound by said judgment or to become a party in privity with any of the parties thereto.
The facts alleged in Paragraph twenty do not constitute a defense for the reason the conveyance by the
Finally, the answer was filed without leave of court.
Appellant contends that John C. Barrett became the sole equitable owner of the real estate involved herein under the terms of the contracts of May 26, 1921, and such contracts were subject to specific performance by said purchaser. She concedes that while Barrett became sole equitable owner the sellers retained a vendor’s lien on said property; that said vendor’s lien was equivalent to an equitable mortgage and subject to foreclosure if the purchase price were not paid pursuant to the terms of the contracts.
That appellant as transferee from said Barrett in his lifetime and as his sole heir at law and distributee of his estate after death became sole equitable owner of said property, with sole right of possession thereof, and was thereby entitled to specific performance of said purchase contracts.
Appellant asserts the trial court erred in overruling her several motions to make more specific, to strike and to separate. Because practically the same questions are presented on the question of the court’s overruling her demurrer to the 15th to 20th paragraphs of the second answer, we proceed to a consideration of that ruling. In support of this contention appellant asserts a plea of res judicata is demurrable if it fails to allege: (1) That the prior proceeding in which the previous order or judgment relied upon was entered was between the same parties or privies as those in the pending suit; (2) That all or some of the same causes of action or issues were involved in the prior proceedings as in the pending suit; (3) That the court entering the prior order or decree was a court of competent jurisdiction to
Appellant then contends that under the facts alleged in her complaint she became the sole equitable owner of this real estate by virtue of the fact John C. Barrett having, in the year 1940, by written agreement inter vivos duly assigned all his right, title and interest in and to said property as his assignee and successor in interest and placed her in exclusive possession thereof; that therefore her equitable title was not subject to be sold under the statute for the payment of decedent’s debts.
Furthermore, she asserts that even if under the foregoing facts she had not become sole equitable owner, etc., she became such equitable owner as his sole heir-at-law and as sole distributee after his death, subject only to the right of the Administrator to sell said real estate to pay decedent’s debts; that it is the rule that title to an ancestor’s real estate rests upon his death in his heir applies even if the estate of the ancestor is insolvent. McClure et al. v. The Federal Land Bank of Louisville et al. (1938), 213 Ind. 644, 648, 14 N. E. 2d 101. There is no showing in the pleadings that the real estate involved was ever sold to pay decedent’s debts.
Cause No. 61771 was an action in ejectment. It is well settled that an ejectment decree is not res judicata so as to be binding upon a person who is not made a party to such proceeding. Jones v. Vert et al. (1889), 121 Ind. 140, 22 N. E. 882; Tobin et al. v. McClellan (1947), 225 Ind. 335, 73 N. E. 2d 679, 75 N. E. 2d 149. It is admitted appellant was not a party to that action, and in our opinion, for the reasons hereinafter stated, she was not in privity to any of the parties in that action. The defendants in that action were the Trust Company as Administrator of the decedent’s estate and as Trustee of said real estate. In its answer in that case it admitted the plaintiffs therein were the owners of said real estate but affirmatively alleged said ownership was subject to the right and option and agreement of the defendant Trust Company as Administrator of said estate under the purchase contracts. The Trust Company as Trustee made no claim to said real estate in said cause.
While there is some dispute between the parties hereto as to whether the Trust Company held this property as a naked trust or an express trust, in our opinion the nature of the trust does not here affect the question of privity between the appellant and the Trust Company in that action.
To be sufficient as a complaint by the trustee of an express trust the pleading must clearly disclose the plaintiff is acting in a representative capacity and should disclose who is the cestui que trust. Sherman & Ellis, Incorporated v. Indianapolis Castings Company (1924), 195 Ind. 370, 144 N. E. 17. That was not done here.
It seems to us that the salutary wisdom and justice of the foregoing rule is demonstrated by the pleadings herein. In our opinion it would be unconscionable to hold that a trustee could represent and bind one beneficiary in a suit brought against the trustee by another beneficiary. Yet, this is the contention of appellees here.
In the case of Tobin et al. v. McClellan, supra, at page 344, the Supreme Court, in defining the term “privy” in actions of this nature, said: “A privy is one who, after the commencement of the action, has acquired an interest in the subject-matter affected by the judgment through or under one of the parties, as by inheritance, succession, or purchase.” (Citing authorities) . (Emphases are those of the Supreme Court).
The pleadings herein disclose appellant’s asserted interest in said property was acquired prior to the commencement of Cause No. 61771. The issues in that case were entirely different than those in this case. Therefore that judgment was no defense to this action of appellant.
Appellees contend appellant’s argument in her brief in reference to the trial court’s ruling on her demurrer to the five paragraphs of answer is confined solely to the defense of res judicata, which they assert is only pleaded in the sixteenth and seventeenth paragraphs of answer; that paragraphs eighteen, nineteen and twenty of their answer is based on other affirmative defenses and therefore they assert appellants have conceded these last mentioned paragraphs of answer are sufficient to bar appellant from all relief despite her replies to said answers. For the reasons hereinafter stated, we cannot agree with this contention.
We do not agree that the contracts referred to superseded the original contracts of sale and purchase. In our opinion they were only modifications of the terms of the original contract. Even if these contracts changed the original contracts of purchase and sale to mere options to purchase, that would not sustain appellees’ contention here. As heretofore indicated, the complaint alleged that appellant and her predecessor in title had paid to the sellers the “full purchase price of said real estate and have fully performed each and all of the other agreements” of the purchase contract, and that the sellers of said property “have heretofore accepted and received during the period from 1921 and the filing of this action the full consideration to which they were entitled” under the purchase contracts. Under these circumstances, even if these subsequent contracts changed the original contracts from one of sale and purchase to an option contract, appellant would be entitled to specific enforcement of her contract. Herrman v. Babcock et al. (1885), 103 Ind. 461, 3 N. E. 142; Thomas et al. v. Heddon et al. (1917), 186 Ind. 48, 114 N. E. 218; Bauermeister v. Sullivan (1928), 87 Ind. App. 628, 160 N. E. 105 (Transfer denied). Furthermore, all of these additional matters could have been proven under the answer of admission and denial.
The twentieth paragraph of answer also incorporates the allegations of the 17th and 18th paragraphs of answer. It then avers the trial court in this action entered judgment in favor of the Trust Company and these appellees are in privity with said Trust Company, and therefore the judgment in favor of the Trust Company innures to their benefit. For the reasons hereinbefore stated, we cannot agree with this contention. (That judgment is not in the record before us).
We are of the opinion the only affirmative defense attempted to be set up in paragraphs sixteen to twenty was that of res judicata. Under the authorities herein cited we hold that defense was not properly pleaded. Therefore, the trial court erred in overruling appellant’s demurrer to each of these paragraphs of answer.
Because of the conclusion we have reached, it is not necessary to consider the second question.
Judgment reversed, with instructions to the Elkhart Superior Court to sustain appellant’s demurrer to the sixteenth, seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth ;and twentieth paragraphs of appellees’ answer.