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60 Ill. 241

Buck v. Buck

Illinois Supreme Court

Decided September 15, 1871

Illinois Supreme Court · decided 1871-09-15

<p>Writ or Error to tbe Circuit Court of Kane county; tbe Hon. I. G. Wilson, Judge, presiding.</p>

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

““It sufficiently appears from the recitals in the decree, that the whole question of alimony was fixed and settled by the agreement of the parties.... Having consented to these provisions of the decree, the plaintiff in error can have no relief against the force of his own voluntary agreement. “Whether the alimony is too high ... it is not now necessary for us to express an opinion. It was competent for the plaintiff in error to consent to such a decree and having done so, it must remain forever binding on him. ’ ’”

quoted by 1 later decision, including 341 Ill. App. 561 - Walters v. Walters

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1871-09-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 20 later decisions — most recently November 1980

1 district · 19 state decisions

30187118801890190019101920193019401950196019701980decided

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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Mr. Justice Scott

¶1delivered the opinion of the Court:

¶2The defendant in error exhibited her bill in the circuit court of Kane county, to the February term, 1867, asking to be divorced from her husband, the plaintiff in error.

¶3The summons issued therein was duly served, and there being no appearance, a decree pro confesso was rendered against the plaintiff in error. The court heard the evidence and pronounced a decree of divorce.

¶4The court found that the plaintiff in error was “ a man of large property/’ and the decree further finds and recites that, “ the alimony having been settled by the consent of parties upon the basis hereinafter stated,” the court thereupon decreed that the plaintiff in error should pay the defendant in error the sum of $12,000, also $1000 worth of furniture, and, in addition thereto, she was to retain “all clothing, trinkets, jewelry and silver ware” which she then had; and the decree further provided that the plaintiff in error should maintain and educate Eva Buck, the adopted child of the parties.

¶5It is now insisted, as a ground of reversal, that the alimony allowed by the court was excessive and oppressive in the amount, and that it was error in the court to decree that the plaintiff in error should maintain and educate the adopted child, Eva Buck.

¶6It sufficiently appears from the recitals in the decree, that the whole question of alimony was fixed and settled by the agreement of the parties, not only the amount of money and articles of personal property allowed to the defendant in error, but also the provision made for the support and -maintenance of their adopted daughter. Having consented to these provisions of the decree, the plaintiff in error can have no relief against the force of his own voluntary agreement!

¶7Whether the alimony is too high, or whether the court had any lawful authority to make provision for the maintenance of the adopted daughter without the consent of the plaintiff in error, it is not now necessary for us to express an opinion. It was competent for the plaintiff in error to consent to such a decree, and having done so, it must remain forever binding on him.

¶8It will be presumed that the court did not enter the decree in .regard to alimony, by consent of parties, without being first legally and sufficiently advised of the consent of the plaintiff in error thereto.

¶9No error appearing in the record, the decree is affirmed.

¶10Decree affirmed.

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