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90 Mass. 421

Hathaway v. Thayer

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Decided September 15, 1864

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · decided 1864-09-15

Bill in equity, brought in March 1863, alleging that the plaintiff, Lydia Hathaway, is a daughter of John Page, late of Clarksburg, deceased; that his estate was administered upon in Berkshire county, and commissioners who were appointed to make partition of the real estate among his heirs, and those entitled thereto, made a report, setting out to the various children, of said John their Various shares of his real estate; that in describing the share intended to be set out…

Decided 1864-09-15

Dewey, J.

¶11. This bill cannot be sustained against any of the defendants. It states no case which authorizes this court to interfere with the partition made by the probate court. If the judgment of that court was erroneous, the proper remedy was by appeal. This court, under a proceeding like this, would not assume to correct alleged mistakes of commissioners appointed to make partition, whose doings were adopted by the probate court, and a decree of partition thereupon ordered.

¶22. The time that has elapsed since making the partition presents a strong case of loches on the part of the plaintiffs. The error, if any exists, was indicated by the return of the commissioners, and to be seen by an examination of the public record, by the parties in interest.

¶33. The bill is also liable to the further objection that it contains no allegation that the parties who have acquired an estate in the portions set off in severalty by the decree of partition had any knowledge of the alleged mistakes in the report of the commissioners, before they acquired their title.

¶4Demurrer sustained.

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