Kollmann v. Kollmann
| Decision Date | 22 November 1927 |
| Docket Number | 38470 |
| Citation | 216 N.W. 77,204 Iowa 950 |
| Parties | J. W. KOLLMANN, Appellee, v. MINNETTE KOLLMANN et al., Appellants |
| Court | Iowa Supreme Court |
Appeal from Polk District Court.--JOHN FLETCHER, Judge.
Action to set aside assignment of lease and bill of sale, and restore possession of drug store to plaintiff. From the decree of the district court granting the relief this appeal was taken.--Modified and affirmed.
Modified and affirmed.
Russell E. Ostrus and Guy Miller, for appellants.
Parsons & Mills, for appellee.
The facts of this controversy determine the issues. For an understanding of the situation and surrounding circumstances the following historical statement is necessary: J. W. Kollmann, plaintiff and appellee, was married to Minnette Kollmann, a defendant and appellant, August 17, 1918. To this union a son, Jack, was born, in May, 1922. Lois Jacobs, a defendant and appellant, is a sister of Minnette Kollmann's, and resides at Tulsa, Oklahoma. Harry Eaton, a member of the state board of pharmacy, sold, on January 31, 1922, to appellee and his wife, the Randolph Pharmacy, located at 200 West Fourth Street, Des Moines. Of this purchase price, $ 3,300 was paid by the husband, and $ 700 by the wife. They took possession and managed and operated the store, both working therein. Shortly thereafter, appellee became addicted to the use of drugs, and as a result, was confined in the Methodist Hospital about two weeks. Then, on the 15th day of May, 1924, he voluntarily went to the state hospital at Independence for treatment, and remained there until November 1, 1924. During this period of Mr. Kollmann's detention, Mrs. Kollmann operated the pharmacy, paid family bills and store accounts, and sent more than $ 1.00 a day to her husband. Meanwhile, appellee became concerned about the extension of the lease for the room occupied by the pharmacy, and wrote appellant Minnette Kollmann about it. She consulted the landlord, and reported to her husband that an additional term would be granted, provided the contract was made in her name, saying that otherwise the instrument would be canceled. Suggestion was also made in her communication that an assignment of the old agreement was necessary, in order to avoid a declaration of forfeiture. Accordingly, appellee, acting upon this information, executed a written transfer thereof to said appellant. After appellee's return from Independence, he drew $ 3,300 out of the savings bank, and put it in a safety deposit box; but afterward, this, or its equivalent, was still retained by him. Appellant Minnette Kollmann also drew funds from the bank, which she says were consumed in living and operating expenses. Again, on January 24, 1925, appellee was sent back to the state hospital for further care and attention, and remained there until July 17th of that year. His wife continued her duties and responsibilities in the joint business. While appellee was being treated the second time, in April, 1925, a bill of sale was sent to him by his wife, for the purpose of conveying the said property to her. This he refused to sign. By letter and in interviews, appellee advised selling out, provided a suitable price could be obtained. Throughout, however, his idea clearly was that the mutual proceeds should be used for reinvestment in Des Moines or some other place. Appellant Kollmann ignored such implied authorization, and disposed of said community interests to her sister, Lois Jacobs, for "$ 1.00 and other considerations." Explanation is made that part of the benefits accruing therefrom were employment of appellant Kollmann by the new vendee at a salary of $ 100 per month, and also the care by appellant Jacobs of the child, Jack. Upon appellee's second return from the state institution, appellant Kollmann refused to permit him to enter upon the premises.
I. Evidence before the district court as the basis for setting...
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