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57 Ind. 186

Greene v. Doane

Indiana Supreme Court

Decided May 15, 1877

Indiana Supreme Court · decided 1877-05-15

<p>Redemption op Read Estate.—Sheriff’s Sale on Foreclomre of Mortgage.— Redemption by Judgment Creditor.—Real estate sold at sheriff’s sale by Tirtue of a decree of foreclosure of- a mortgage thereon, accompanied hy a personal judgment against the debtor, may be redeemed by the judgment creditor, from the purchaser, where the amount realized by such sale is insufficient to satisfy such judgment.</p>

Relies on Davis v. Langsdale · Foltz v. Hart

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1877-05-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 11 later decisions — most recently January 1922

11 state decisions

50187718801890190019101920decided

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.

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Perkins, C. J.

¶1Suit to redeem land.

¶2The complaint is in two paragraphs, substantially alike.

¶3The complaint was held bad on demurrer, and the defendants had final judgment in the cause upon it in their favor.

¶4Interspersed amongst a great deal of- irrelevant matter, the following facts were stated in it, viz.:

¶5That Allen Greene, plaintiff, held a note and mortgage on Clarence E. Doane; that said Greene procured a decree of foreclosure of the mortgage, with an order for the sale of the mortgaged property, and execution for the collection of any balance of the decree that might remain unpaid after the sale of said property, and application of the proceeds thereof to the payment of the decree; that the property was sold upon the decree, leaving three hundred dollars thereof unpaid by the proceeds of the sale; that the property was purchased, at the sale, by Isaiah B. *187McDonald, who received the certificate of sale from the sheriff'; that, within three months after the sale, plaintiff, Greene, tendered to said McDonald the amount paid by him for the land, at the sale, with ten per cent, interest thereon and costs, etc., .and demanded the certificate of sale; that the money was refused by McDonald, whereupon Greene paid the same into the clerk’s office for him; that Doane, the j udgment debtor, is insolvent, etc.

¶6'The complaint contains many other allegations, hut we need not set them out.

¶7It is evident, from the argument of counsel in this court, that the demurrer to the complaint was sustained, upon the ground that a judgment plaintiff could not redeem from a sale upon his own judgment. "Whether such redemption can take place or not, under the statute^ is the principal question discussed by the counsel in this court.

¶8When we use the term judgment debtor, we apply it indiscriminately to a debtor by mortgage decree and by judgment in the common-law sense. The language of the statute is, that “ any mortgagee or judgment creditor having a lien upon the same may redeem such real property or interest therein, at any time within,” etc. 2 R. S. 1876, p. 220, see. 1. Allen Greene is shown to he a judgment creditor; and that he has a lien upon the premises is decided by the case of The State, ex rel., etc., v. Sherill, 84 Ind. 57. The letter of the statute gives him a right to redeem, and if he is denied that right by the court, it must he done by a construction of the statute, narrowing its literal meaning and operation. But this court has already decided that it will give the statute “ a liberal construction.” Davis v. Langsdale, 41 Ind. 399.

¶9In fact, the two cases above cited substantially decide the case under consideration.

¶10We think the judgment plaintiff had a right to redeem, in this case, from a sale, upon his own judgment.

¶11As to the mode of subjecting to sale, for the payment *188of debts, equitable interests of the judgment debtor, see 2 Ri S. 1876, p. 228, and notes on pp. 228 to 233.

¶12Tbe judgment below is reversed, with costs, and the cause remanded for further proceedings, in accordance with this opinion.

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