Public-domain · open source
OpenJurist

116 Mass. 371

Litchman v. Potter

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Decided December 31, 1874

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · decided 1874-12-31

Replevin. The writ, which was served by a constable, directed the officer to “ replevy the goods and chattels following, viz.: the contents of a grocery store, so called, situate on Lee Street in Marblehead, and numbered 3 on said street, belonging to Charles H. Litchman and William T. Litchman, now taken ami held by Daniel Potter.” There was no allegation in the body of the writ of the value of the property to be replevied; but there was an agreement signed by the parties…

Relies on Clap v. Guild · Leonard v. Hannon

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1874-12-31

How this case has been cited

Cited by 10 later decisions — most recently June 1944

10 state decisions

3018741880189019001910192019301940decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

Endicott, J.

¶1It is not necessary in a replevin writ to allege the value of the goods to be replevied. Pomeroy v. Trimper, 8 Allen, 398. Blake v. Darling, ante, 300. If alleged, it may under some circumstances be admissible against the plaintiff as evidence of value; Clap v. Guild, 8 Mass. 153; Barnes v. Bartlett, 15 Pick. 71; but is not conclusive evidence even on the question of jurisdiction, if the agreement or appraisal establishes the value to be less than twenty dollars. King v. Dewey, 11 Cush. 218. The agreement or appraisement determines the value for all the purposes of the case. Leonard v. Hannon, 105 Mass. 113. As the value named in the agreement in this case was less than three hundred dollars, a constable could serve the writ, the determination of the value being preliminary to the service. Gen. Sts. c. 143, §§ 3, 12 ; c. 18, § 61. St. 1872, c. 268. The ad damnum, alleged in the writ to be five hundred dollars, is not an allegation of value; that is determined by the agreement; and it was clearly within the power of the court to allow the amendment in conformity to the fact.

¶2The description of the property to be replevied, though general in its terms, meets the requirements of the statutes, and is not so vague and indefinite as to be bad on demurrer. The officer is directed to replevy the contents of a grocery store. The goods ordinarily contained in such a store are too numerous and varied *374to be enumerated in detail. The store is pointed out, and the goods are further described as now taken and held by a deputy sheriff as the property of another. This is a sufficient description to inform the officer and to furnish the means of clearly identifying the property; and that it was so identified appears by the agreement of the parties as to the value.

¶3Exceptions and demurrer overruled.

/116/mass/371 · .json · Public domain