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38 S.C.L. 101

Pledger v. Easterling

Court of Appeals of South Carolina

Decided November 15, 1850

Court of Appeals of South Carolina · decided 1850-11-15

<p>Land was devised to trustees in trust to permit A. B. to have the use and occupation for life, and after his death to convey to the heirs of his body, with a limitation over if ho died without such heirs; and with further power, in a certain event, to convey the land to A. B. in fee, discharged of the trust. In February, 1837, defendant, under some agreement to purchase, entered into possession of the land, and held the same adversely. In 1845 the trustees conveyed the land to A. B., who, in September, 1848, sued the defendant therefor: Held (1) that, under the devise, the legal title to the land was in the trustees; (2) that, in February, 1837, the statute of limitations commenced to run against them; (3) and that, as the statute of limitations would have barred the trustees before September, 1848, had the title continued in them, so it barred A. B., who occupied, under his conveyance, no better position, as against the defendant, than they would have done had the conveyance not been executed.</p>

Decided 1850-11-15

¶1 Curia, per

O’Neall, J.

¶2In this case we are satisfied with the decision of the Judge below.

¶3The legal estate was in the trustees, both by the words of the will and also by the necessary implication arising from the direction to hold for the plaintiff during his life, and after his death to convey to the heirs of his body; and failing such, then to the testator’s children surviving. The further direction, authorizing them to convey to the plaintiff absolutely on a certain contingency, only enabled them to divest themselves of this legal estate. Doing so could not affect the defendant as to the effect of his possessory rights. When the trustees conveyed to their cestui que use, the statute, which had previously began to run, run on exactly as it would in the case of a descent cast on an adult heir, where possession had begun in the lifetime of the ancestor.

¶4In such a case, when the ten years ran out, the statute would bar the heir. So here. The estates of cestui que use and of the trustees are, in law, one legal estate: and whatever would have barred the trustees, if they had not conveyed, will bar him.

¶5It is true, if the plaintiff had been a minor when the conveyance was made to him, it might have been that his infancy would have arrested the statute. But even that is by no means certain.

¶6*104Here, however, he was of full age, while the whole possession of the defendant was maturing — and therefore he has no cause to complain that the statute is opposed against his title.

¶7The motion is dismissed.

Evans, Wardlaw, Frost, Withers and Whitner, JX, concurred.

¶8 Motion dismissed.

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