Pacific Bank v. Robinson

McKee, J.: Appeal from an order made after judgment, upon proceedings supplementary to execution, requiring the defendants to transfer and assign, by a proper instrument in writing, as required by the laws of the United States, all their right, title, [522]and interest in a patent right for broom-sockets, which they hold under United States letters-patent dated October 27th, 1874, to a receiver appointed to sell the same, and apply the proceeds in satisfaction of a judgment which the plaintiff had recovered against the defendant in July, 1879.

It is objected that the order is erroneous, because United States letters-patent, issued to inventors and discoverers under the patent laws of the United States, are not the subject of levy and sale, and cannot be applied to the satisfaction of a judgment.

By the law of this State all goods, chattels, money, and other property, both real and personal, or any interest therein of the judgment debtor, are liable to execution. (§ 688, Code Civ. Proc.) And if there be property which cannot be reached by execution, and which the judgment debtor refuses to apply to the satisfaction of the judgment, he may be compelled, upon examination, in proceedings supplementary to execution, to deliver it in satisfaction of the judgment (§§ 714-721, Code Civ. Proc.) ; i. e., to a receiver appointed to dispose of it in aid of the execution. (§ 564, Code Civ. Proc.) The principle as well as the policy of the law is, therefore, to subject every species of property of a judgment debtor to the payment of his debts. No species of property would seem to be exempt, except such as is especially exempted by law, and any property not directly liable to execution may be reached for the satisfaction of the judgments. This was effected, under the old system of practice, by a proceeding in equity, known as the creditor’s bill. After a judgment creditor had exhausted his remedy at law, by the issuance of a, fieri facias, which was returned nulla bona, he had the right to invoke the jurisdiction of a court of equity to aid him, upon the principle of compelling a discovery of assets, tangible or intangible, and applying them to satisfying his execution. (Bruhkerloff v. Brown, 4 Johns. Ch. 671; McDermott v. Strong, id. 687; 20 Johns. 554.)

Proceedings under §§ 714 to 721 and § 574 of the Code of Civil Procedure were intended as a substitute for the creditor’s bill as formerly used in chancery. (Adams v. Hackett, 7 Cal. 201; Lynch v. Johnson, 48 N. Y. 33.) So that any property which was reachable by a creditor’s bill may now be reached by the process of proceedings supplementary to execution.