Owings v. Laugharn

SHAW, J. pro tem.

Plaintiff brought this action to quiet her title to four lots, alleged to be her separate property, against defendant as the trustee in bankruptcy of plaintiff’s husband. Defendant filed a cross-complaint in which he alleged that a deed of these lots, made to plaintiff by her husband, was fraudulent and void as against creditors of the husband, and sought to have his title as trustee quieted against plaintiff and her husband. Judgment was rendered in favor of plaintiff on both complaint and cross-complaint, from which defendant appeals.

Plaintiff and her husband were married more than forty years before the trial, lived in Nebraska from 1903 to 1921, and have lived in California since 1921. While they lived in Nebraska the plaintiff acquired some real property which she and her husband testified was her separate property, although the title stood of record in her husband’s name. This property !was sold for $3,100 at or before the purchase of any of the property now in question. The plaintiff’s husband also gave her, back in Nebraska, the profit, amounting to $2,800, on the sale which she negotiated of some property belonging to him. She also worked at dressmaking and other things, under an agreement with her husband that what she made should be her own property. Altogether she had more than $7,000. Defendant. criticizes the testimony by which these facts are

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shown and asks us to reject it, as far as it goes to establish plaintiff’s ownership of funds which were her separate property. But, while this testimony contains some inconsistencies and discrepancies, these presented only a question for the trial court, whose acceptance of the testimony is conclusive here.

In 1919 plaintiff’s husband came to Los Angeles on a visit, apparently preliminary to their move out here, and saw some property which he liked, being two of the lots here in question, on which was a house. On his return to Nebraska he told plaintiff of it; he sent some of her money out here to hold the deal, with her consent, and later the property was conveyed to him, the entire purchase price being paid from plaintiff’s separate funds, above described. A year or two later plaintiff bought three more lots, taking the title in her husband’s name and mortgaging those first bought for enough money to make the down payment. Then she sold one of these three lots for enough to pay the price of all three, leaving all the lots clear of encumbrance.