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58 Ala. 630

Smith v. Murphy

Supreme Court of Alabama

Decided December 15, 1877

Supreme Court of Alabama · decided 1877-12-15

Heard before the Hon. N. S. Graham. The bill, in this case, was filed by William Murphy, and Thomas J. Murphy, and avers (1), that on the 13th of March, 1873, said Thomas J. Murphy was in possession, and was the equitable owner of a certain tract of land (described in the bill), but that the title thereto was in said William Murphy, he being the father of said Thomas J. Murphy; that on said day the said Thomas J. Murphy borrowed from one John C. Tanner the sum of $400,…

Relies on Locke's v. Palmer · Hunt v. Acre · West v. Hendrix

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1877-12-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 11 later decisions — most recently May 1958

10 state decisions

20187718801890190019101920193019401950decided

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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STONE, J.

¶1There are two points upon which the decree in this cause must be reversed. The deed of November, 1873, from Murphy and wife to Tanner, vested the legal title to the lands in the latter. When he died, the title descended to his heirs. The bill seeks to divest the title from Tanner’s heirs, and vest it in complainant, Thomas J. Murphy. To *635maintain snob bill, and to obtain such relief, it is indispensable that the heirs of Tanner should be parties. — Sto. Eq. Pl. § 188; Moore v. Murrah, 40 Ala. 573; 1 Brick. Dig. 753, §§ 1687, 1695; Ib. 755, § 1731; Ib. 756, §§ 1743, 1745 ; Kennedy v. Kennedy, 20 Ala. 571; Jennings v. Jennings, 9 Ala. 286; Thompson v. Campbell, 57 Ala. 183.

¶2By executing an absolute deed to Tanner, the complainants armed him with a legal advantage, and rendered it necessary, if they would assert their alleged equity, that they become actors in the litigation. Being forced to seek equity, the rule is inflexible that they must offer to do equity; and if any balance of principal is found due from Murphy' to Tanner, such balance bears the statutory rate of interest. Pearson v. Bailey, 23 Ala. 537; Hunt v. Acre, 28 Ala. 580; 1 Sto. Eq. Ju. § 64e.

¶3It follows, from what is stated above, that the pleadings in this cause must be amended, by making new parties defendants ; and this will render it necessary to retake the testimony. Upon certain points, we would prefer that the testimony should be fuller. We mention three, and counsel may discover others:

¶4First. Whether, when the deed was made to Tanner, the note and mortgage were cancelled, or what disposition was made of them.

¶5Second. When parts of the land were subsold, the proceeds of which, it is alleged, constituted the partial payments to the executors, with whose consent and approbation, if any, was this done V Had Tanner any, and what connection with this transaction ?

¶6Third. Under what contract of renting, or otherwise, were the lands held and occupied during the year 1875?

¶7As bearing on the main question in this cause, see McKinstry v. Conly, 12 Ala. 678; Eiland v. Radford, 7 Ala. 724; Williamson v. Culpepper, 16 Ala. 211; Robinson v. Farrelly, 16 Ala. 472; Turnipseed v. Cunningham, Ib. 501; Locke v. Palmer, 26 Ala. 312; West v. Hendrix, 28 Ala. 226; Peeples v. Stolla, 57 Ala. 53; Pearson v. Seay, 35 Ala. 612; s. c. 38 Ala. 643; Davis v. Hubbard, Ib. 185; Code of 1876, § 2199.

¶8We abstain from expressing an opinion on the merits of this controversy, because the facts are not fully before us.

¶9Beversed and remanded.

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