Kammerer v. Morlock
| Decision Date | 04 December 1900 |
| Citation | 84 N.W. 319,125 Mich. 320 |
| Court | Michigan Supreme Court |
| Parties | KAMMERER et al. v. MORLOCK et al. |
Appeal from circuit court, Berrien county, in chancery; Orville W Coolidge, Judge.
Bill by Mary Kammerer and others against Frank Morlock and others. From a decree in favor of defendants, plaintiffs appeal. Reversed.
George W. Budgman and Edward Bacon, for appellants.
W. A Hamilton and O'Hara & O'Hara, for appellees.
This bill was filed to set aside certain administrator sales of two parcels of real estate in the city of St. Joseph. One parcel is designated in the bill as the 'Dwelling-House Property,' and the other as the 'Boarding-House Property.' They both belonged to Peter Breidinger at the time of his death, June 28, 1874. He left surviving him his widow and the six complainants, his children and heirs at law, who were born, respectively, as follows: Mary Breidinger (now Kammerer), September 14, 1861; Sophia Breidinger (now Weist), July 22, 1865; Peter Breidinger, May 3, 1867; Lizzie Breidinger (now Lorenz), February 15, 1869; Frank Breidinger April 3, 1871; Nicholas Breidinger, March 5, 1874. Frank Morlock, one of the defendants, was appointed administrator of the estate, July 14, 1874. He filed his inventory and appraisement of said estate, showing the dwelling-house property appraised at $1,000, and the boarding-house property at $1,500. There was certain other real estate which it is not necessary here to state. The personalty was appraised at $245. Settlement was had in 1876, before the probate court the account showing payment to outside creditors of claims originating before the death of Peter Breidinger amounting to $1,500, and the account closes with the statement 'Balance due administrator, $68.46; due creditors from estate, $800.' The widow and her children continued in possession of the two properties until her death, in June, 1878. In July of that year, Frank Morlock filed a petition to be appointed administrator de bonis non of the Peter Breidinger estate, and the following month was duly appointed as administrator de bonis non. Appraisers were appointed as well as commissioners to audit claims. The appraisers filed their inventory, stating the valuation of the boarding-house property to be $1,100, and the dwelling-house property to be $700, and the personal property $1,111.50. In August, 1878, Morlock filed in the probate court his petition for license to sell both parcels of real estate, stating that the amount due to creditors was $1,300. In September, Conrad Kammerer, on petition of Morlock, was appointed guardian of the children. The two pieces of property were sold January 11, 1879, upon an order of the probate court for the purpose of payment of the debts. The dwelling-house property, according to the report of the administrator, was sold for $525, and the boarding-house property for $900; the sale of the boarding-house property being for one-third of the purchase price in cash, and the remainder secured by mortgage on the premises sold, payment to be made within two years from date of sale, with interest at 7 per cent. A report made by the commissioner on claims was filed in February, 1879, showing claims allowed amounting to $989.74. In May, 1881, Kammerer resigned his guardianship of the children, and defendant Morlock was appointed in his place, although it is claimed he never took the oath or filed any bond or made any report as such guardian; but it is claimed by the defendant that he went on paying the debts as administrator, and as guardian of the children paid to Mary and Sophia $97 each, and in May, 1888, paid two more of the children $103.75 each, and took their receipts in full for their share of the estate. It appears from the testimony that Morlock, as administrator, sold the dwellinghouse property to Christian Melsheimer, and the boarding-house property to his stepfather, Christian Stein. In January, 1880, Stein...
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