Richardson's Estate, In re

• Decision Date: 16 December 1958
• Docket Number: No. 49542,49542
• Citation: 250 Iowa 275,93 N.W.2d 777
• Parties: In the Matter of the ESTATE of Arthur V. RICHARDSON, Deceased. Lee Forrest RICHARDSON, Claimant-Appellee, v. Gertrude RICHARDSON, Administratrix of the Estate of Arthur V. Richardson, Deceased, Defendant-Appellant. George F. RICHARDSON, Claimant-Appellee, v. Gertrude RICHARDSON Administratrix of the Estate of Arthur V. Richardson, Deceased, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

Page 777

93 N.W.2d 777

250 Iowa 275

In the Matter of the ESTATE of Arthur V. RICHARDSON, Deceased.

Lee Forrest RICHARDSON, Claimant-Appellee, v. Gertrude RICHARDSON, Administratrix of the Estate of Arthur V. Richardson, Deceased, Defendant-Appellant.

George F. RICHARDSON, Claimant-Appellee, v. Gertrude RICHARDSON Administratrix of the Estate of Arthur V. Richardson, Deceased, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 49542.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

Dec. 16, 1958.

Bailey C. Webber, Ottumwa, for defendant-appellant.

Jones, White & Johnson, Ottumwa, and C. G. Updegraff, Sigourney, for claimants-appellees.

PETERSON, Justice.

F. P. Richardson died intestate on July 23, 1905, a resident of Keokuk County. He left surviving him his wife, Louisa C., three sons, Arthur V., George F., and Lee Forrest and one daughter, Nora B. Martin. At the time of his death he was the owner of a farm of 180 acres and owned an undivided one half interest in another farm of 125 acres. His sons owned the other one half. The widow and three sons continued to maintain the farming operations. They did not farm jointly, but each farmed a separate tract in accordance with mutual agreement as to allocation of acreage as between the four parties.

September 23, 1925, the widow and three sons entered into written settlement agreement as to items owing by Arthur V. Richardson to the widow and the other two sons in connection with Arthur's purchase of his share in the 125 acres and in connection with rentals owing by him. In settlement of all accounts to date Arthur owed his mother $5,773.80. He owed his brothers Lee Forrest and George F. each $3,849.20. As an evidence of the amounts due his mother and two brothers he executed promissory notes payable in ten years with interest at 6% per annum.

The notes were not paid at their expiration and on August 29, 1949, the three sons, together with two children of Nora B. Martin, the daughter who had died in the meantime, entered into a written extension agreement as to the three notes.

Louisa C. Richardson died intestate January 17, 1939, and her son, L. F. Richardson, also known as Lee Forrest, was appointed administrator of her estate. Her heirs were the three sons and four children of the daughter, Nora B. Martin, deceased.

The estate of Louisa C. Richardson remained open for some years and prior to the filing of the claims involved in this case, L. F. Richardson resigned as administrator and Frank Borough was appointed.

November 23, 1953, Arthur V. Richardson died intestate. He left no children or lineal descendants, but left his wife Gertrude surviving him. She was appointed administratrix of this estate.

Arthur had not paid the three notes he had given to his mother and two brothers, and after his estate was opened the administrator of Louisa's estate and George F. and Lee Forrest Richardson each filed claims in his estate on the notes executed by him to each of them, together with accrued interest.

In connection with the claim of Louisa C. Richardson's estate the administratrix of the estate of Arthur V. Richardson, deceased, filed answer and amendment, alleging eleven items of defense. She also filed answers to claims of George F. and Lee Forrest Richardson.

The claim in the Louisa C. Richardson Estate was tried and the jury returned a verdict in favor of the estate of Arthur V. Richardson, deceased.

After the case was tried Gertrude Richardson as administratrix of the estate of Arthur V. Richardson, deceased, filed a second amendment to her answer to the claims of George F. and Lee Forrest Richardson. She made further defensive allegations as follows: 1. That the three claims were all prepared by the same attorneys, and as a result of conferences and consultations between said attorneys and Lee Forrest and George. 2. That the obligation of the estate of Arthur V. Richardson to the three claimants is based on the original accounting agreement, and the extension agreement, rather than upon the promissory notes. 3. That in the estate of Louisa C. Richardson the real party in interest is not Frank Borough, administrator of her estate, but the parties in interest are, at least to the extent of two thirds of the claim, the said George F. and Lee Forrest Richardson. 4. That both Lee Forrest and George F. were voluntarily present in the courtroom at the time of the trial on the claim of Louisa C. Richardson Estate. They were witnesses in the case and counseled and advised with the attorneys during the progress of the trial.

Appellant contends that by reason of said allegations in the second amendment to answers in the two claims, the decision as to the Louisa C. Richardson Estate claim is res judicata as to such claims. Appellant also alleges the claims are estopped by the judgment rendered in the claim which was tried.

Both Lee Forrest and George F. filed motion to strike the second amendment to answer filed by Gertrude Richardson as administratrix. The trial court sustained the motions.

In accordance with R.C.P. 332, 58 I.C.A. this court granted authority to Gertrude Richardson, administratrix to appeal from the interlocutory ruling. She has appealed.

I. The principle of res judicata is well established in our jurisprudence. The general theory is to avoid duplication of litigation under certain established rules. If a litigant has had his day in court he is not entitled to a second day. The doctrine has had judicial attention so often that definite rules have been developed. In fact, the fundamental rules are rather simple. At times the application to the facts becomes difficult. 30 Am.Jur., Judgments, § 161 states the situation as follows: '* * * It has been declared that when a case lies hard by the line of cleavage between what is and what is not res judicata, it may be a nice question to determine on which side of the line the case falls.'

The test as to whether or not the principle of res judicata is present, to become effective in connection with a previous case, is: 1. Same parties, or parties in privity. 2. Same cause of action. 3. Same issues. 30 Am.Jur., Judgments, § 161; 50 C.J.S. Judgments § 592; School Tp. of Bloomfield v. Independent School District of Castalia, 134 Iowa 349, 112 N.W. 5; McCullough v. Connelly, 137 Iowa 682, 114 N.W. 301, 15 L.R.A.,N.S., 823; Kunkel v. Eastern Iowa Light & Power Co-op., 232 Iowa 649, 5 N.W.2d 899; State ex rel. Howson v. Consolidated School District, 245 Iowa 1244, 65 N.W.2d 168.

As a general definition 30 Am.Jur., Judgments, § 161, states: 'Briefly stated, the doctrine of res judicata is that an existing final judgment rendered upon the merits, without fraud or collusion, by a court of competent jurisdiction, is conclusive of rights, questions, and facts in issue, as to the parties and their privies, in all other actions in the same or any other judicial tribunal of concurrent jurisdiction.'

We have defined the doctrine in the recent case of State ex rel. Howson v. Consolidated School District, supra [245 Iowa 1244, 65 N.W.2d 171], as follows: 'The doctrine of res judicata is well established and it may exist under two situations. (1), as a bar to a second action upon the cause of action, and (2), as a bar to relitigation of particular facts or issues in a different cause of action. But in both instances, the parties thereto must be identical or in privy thereto.'

II. Obviously, in the case at bar, the parties are not the same. The case tried was claim of administrator of Estate of Louisa C. Richardson, deceased, v. Estate of Arthur V. Richardson, deceased. As far as parties it becomes a question as to whether or not George and Lee Forrest are privy to the estate of their mother. We defined 'privity' in case of Leach v. First National Bank, 206 Iowa 265, 217 N.W. 865, 868, using following language: 'Privity is said to be a mutual or successive relationship to the same rights of property, and if it is sought to bind one as privy by an adjudication against another with whom he is in privity, it must appear that at the time he acquired the right, or succeeded to the title, it was then affected by the adjudication, for, f the right was acquired by him before the adjudication, then the doctrine cannot apply.' (Emphasis ours.)

See also White v. Peterson, 222 Iowa 720, 269 N.W. 878; State ex rel. Weede v. Bechtel, 239 Iowa 1298, 31 N.W.2d 853, 866, 8 A.L.R.2d 1162.

In the last cited case we quoted with approval a very brief definition which was evolved from many cases both in and outside our jurisdiction as follows: "Privity' is defined to be the mutual or successive relationship to the same rights of property, * * * and accrued subsequent to the commencement of that action.'

It will readily be observed that George and Lee Forrest Richardson are not in privity as to their claims, with the holder of the claim which was tried. The cardinal rule is that in order to be considered in privity the rights of the party must accrue subsequently to the commencement of the previous action. In addition to above cited cases as to this theory see also Hawkeye Life Insurance Co. v. Valley-Des Moines Co., 220 Iowa 556, 260 N.W. 669, 673, 105 A.L.R. 1018. In said case we stated: 'It is also another well-settled rule that, in order to make such judgment or decree binding, the rights of the party sought to be bound must accrue subsequently to the commencement of the suit. * * * One is not privy to a judgment where his succession to the right of property thereby affected occurred previously to the institution of the suit.' (Emphasis ours.)

Again in Tutt v. Smith, 201 Iowa 107, 204 N.W. 294, 297, 48 A.L.R. 394, the court said: 'It is contended that appellant is bound by the adjudication in the action brought by appellee against Herst. We think the contention is without merit. Passing for the moment the question of her intervention in the action, appellant was not in privity with Herst. She acquired her right before the commencement of that action. * * *' (Emphasis...