Cooney v. Pedroli
| Decision Date | 05 May 1925 |
| Docket Number | 2659. |
| Citation | 235 P. 637,49 Nev. 55 |
| Parties | COONEY et al. v. PEDROLI et al.[a1] |
| Court | Nevada Supreme Court |
Appeal from District Court, Humboldt County; James A. Callahan Judge.
Suit by Mary E. Cooney and another against Louise Pedroli administratrix of the estate of Charles Pedroli, and another. From a judgment for plaintiffs, and an order denying a new trial, defendants appeal. Reversed, with directions to enter judgment for defendants.
L. O. Hawkins, of Winnemucca, and Prince A. Hawkins and Price & Hawkins, all of Reno, for appellants.
Thomas A. Brandon, of Winnemucca, for respondents.
This is a suit in equity brought by the respondents to obtain a decree establishing that they are the owners of an undivided two-thirds interest in all the property possessed by Charles Pedroli at the time of his death. The respondents are a brother and a sister of the deceased Charles Pedroli. The appellant is the administratrix of his estate. A demurrer to the amended complaint was overruled and appellant answered. Most of the allegations in the amended complaint are denied in the amended answer, and in addition eight separate defenses are interposed. Judgment was rendered in favor of respondents and a motion for a new trial was denied. From the judgment and order denying the motion for a new trial this appeal is taken.
As we reached the conclusion that the demurrer should have been sustained, it will be necessary to set out in this opinion substantially the allegations of the amended complaint.
The appellant, Louise Pedroli, was appointed and qualified as the administratrix of the estate of Charles Pedroli, deceased, on March 30, 1920, and is now such administratrix. On or about the 29th day of September, 1896, Celeste Pedroli died intestate in the county of Humboldt in this state and left estate therein consisting of horses, cattle, farming equipment, and about 400 acres of land, together with improvements on said land and water rights appurtenant thereto, all of which was community property, and situated in said Humboldt county. He left surviving him a widow, Felecitia Pedroli, and three children, Charles Pedroli, then aged 29 years, and now deceased, Julius Pedroli, a son, then aged 24 years, and Mary E. Pedroli, a daughter, aged 20 years. Thereafter, Felecitia Pedroli was appointed and qualified as the administratrix of the estate of Celeste Pedroli, and after due and legal proceedings the estate hereinafter described, together with the sum of $3,681, also belonging to the estate, was by decree of court distributed as follows: An undivided one-half thereof to the surviving widow, and one-sixth to each of said surviving children.
On the death of the father, Charles Pedroli, without objection on the part of his brother and sister, now Mary Cooney, the respondents herein assumed and entered into the exclusive management and control of the property. (It is alleged that such property was by the said brother and sister left in the care, custody, and control of Charles Pedroli.) Continuously thereafter and until the time of the death of Charles Pedroli he managed and controlled the property and exercised dominion over it, and handled, traded, sold, and otherwise disposed of the same, and the rents, issues, and profits and increase thereof, in his own name and in like manner as though he were the sole owner thereof, but always, it is also alleged, subject to the rights of his brother and sister, and as their agent and trustee in so far as their rights and interests were affected thereby, and for their use and benefit.
Felecitia Pedroli died intestate on or about the 6th day of September, 1911, at Bodio, Republic of Switzerland, leaving estate of her undivided one-half interest in the property left by her deceased husband, and in the increase to the personal property and additions to the real estate. Her surviving heirs were the said children. Charles Pedroli was appointed and qualified as administrator of her estate on or about the 19th day of February, 1912, and entering upon the duties of his trust as such took possession of all the real and personal property belonging to the estate, remained and continued to remain in possession from the time of his appointment until his death on the 12th day of January, 1919.
On the 9th day of July, 1912, at the request and prayer of Charles Pedroli as administrator, the estate of Felecitia Pedroli was by decree of court distributed as follows, to wit: An undivided one-third thereof to each of said children, which decree provided in part that, upon the production of satisfactory vouchers by the administrator that he had paid all of the sums of money due from him, and delivered all the property of the estate to the parties entitled, he be discharged from his said trust and that he and his sureties be released from all liability therefrom thereafter to be incurred on account of the administration of this estate. Charles Pedroli never paid or delivered the property described in the decree to his brother and sister and was never discharged from his trust, and without objection on their part retained possession and control of all thereof, together with the rents, issues, and profits thereof from the time of his appointment to the time of his death.
It is alleged that during the time from the date of the death of his father to the death of Charles Pedroli in January, 1919, the latter received and had said property in his possession and under his control and management together with rents, issues, profits, and increase thereof, and possessed, controlled, sold, and disposed of the same without objection on the part of his brother and sister, as their agent and trustee, as though the same were his sole and separate property, but not adversely to their interests therein or in derogation of their rights thereto, but that at all times he admitted and recognized their right as the owners of an undivided two-thirds interest in the property and the rents, issues, profits, and increase thereof, that all of the property was either the original property belonging to the estate of Celeste Pedroli and the estate of Felecitia Pedroli, or was acquired by Charles Pedroli out of the rents, issues, profits, and increase of the property of those estates while he was acting as the agent and trustee of his brother and sister; that an undivided two-thirds interest of the same is the property of the brother and sister.
It is alleged that Charles Pedroli never at any time accounted to the brother and sister concerning his management, control, and disposition of their interest in the property; that they permitted him to act as their agent and trustee with the full faith and confidence in his business management and integrity in the bona fide belief that he was more competent in that respect than either of them to manage the same to the best advantage and greatest profit to himself and them; that they believed that he would account fully and honestly to them at any time they or either of them made on him a demand therefor; that for these reasons they never made a demand on him for an accounting and were always willing to leave the control, management, and disposition of the property in his hands with full faith and confidence in his judgment and integrity.
It is alleged that the defendant, Louise Pedroli (appellant here), as administratrix of the estate of Charles Pedroli, deceased, and personally claims some right, title, or interest in and to said two-thirds of the property belonging to his brother and sister, which claim is adverse to them and is without foundation in law or equity; that she has no right, title, or interest in and to the two-thirds of the property belonging to them. It is alleged that since the death of Charles Pedroli, all of the two-thirds of the property belonging to them, has come into the hands of said administratrix of his estate, who is now holding, managing, and controlling the same, together with the rents, issues, profits, and increase thereof, as trustee for said Julius Pedroli and Mary Cooney for their use and benefit.
Among the grounds stated in the demurrer to the amended complaint are: (1) That the amended complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action against the defendants or either of them; (2) that it appears upon the face of the amended complaint that the cause of action therein set forth, if any ever existed, was barred at the time of the commencement of the action, by the laches of the plaintiffs, and under the doctrine of equitable estoppel.
The nature of this suit is purely equitable. The substance of the claim as averred in the complaint is that during all of the years that Charles Pedroli was in possession, management, and control of the property from the death of his father until his own death, he was acting as a trustee for his brother and sister, the respondents, as to their interest in the property and in the increase and profits thereof. A decree is demanded to that effect, and that the respondents be declared the owners of said interest, their title to such quieted against appellant, and for an accounting from her for her control and management of such interest from the time of the death of Charles Pedroli.
The doctrine of laches has been universally accepted in courts of equity. In an early English case Lord Camden declared:
...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Bankers Trust Co. v. Pacific Employers Insurance Co.
...for commencement of the suit, constitutes no bar to the action." 20 Nev. at page 140, 18 P. at page 363. See also Cooney v. Pedroli, 1925, 49 Nev. 55, 235 P. 637. We conclude that this case should not be disposed of by summary judgment on the issues of law presented by the motion Reversed. ......
-
Cavell v. Cavell
...change of circumstances to render it inequitable to grant relief. Miller v. Walser, 42 Nev. 497, 181 P. 437 (1919); Cooney v. Pedroli, 49 Nev. 55, 63, 235 P. 637 (1925). The record reveals no such change in circumstances favoring the respondent, but only that he enjoyed a more successful an......
-
State v. Rosenthal
...that works a disadvantage to another. Home Savings v. Bigelow, 105 Nev. 494, 496, 779 P.2d 85, 86 (1989) (citing Cooney v. Pedroli, 49 Nev. 55, 62, 235 P. 637, 640 (1925)). As a result of such delay, the condition of the party asserting laches becomes drastically altered, whereby he cannot ......
-
Harley-Davidson Credit Corp. v. Turudic
...rights, it is delay that works a disadvantage to another." Home Sav. Ass'n v. Bigelow, 105 Nev. 494, 496 (1989) (citing Cooney v. Pedroli, 49 Nev. 55, 62 (1925)). "The condition of the party asserting laches must become so changed that he cannot be restored to his former state." Id. "It is ......