[Download] "Whiteside Et Al. v. Merchants' Nat. Bank" by Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Whiteside Et Al. v. Merchants' Nat. Bank
- Author : Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
- Release Date : January 27, 1933
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 74 KB
Description
RUGG, Chief Justice. The plaintiffs, as assignees under an assignment in writing made for the benefit of his creditors by
the defendant Ross Whittier (hereafter called the defendant), bring this suit in equity against him and the executors of the
will of his grandfather, Albert R. Whittier, under which he is a beneficiary, for a decree (1) interpreting that will to the
extent of defining the interest of the defendant thereunder and (2) establishing the right of the plaintiffs to that interest
of the defendant. The allegations of the bill in effect are that the plaintiffs are assignees under a written assignment as
amended whereby the defendant assigned to them all his 'property and estate, both real and personal * * * wherever situate,
both within and without said Commonwealth, excepting only such as by the laws of said Commonwealth is exempt from attachment,'
including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, 'choses in action, interests in properties, whether legal or
beneficial, and whether fee, leasehold or otherwise * * * and any and all interests in estates or otherwise to which creditors
* * * are by law entitled or in which by law they should have an interest, so far as * * * assignable * * * and not exempt
by law.' The assignment is for the benefit of the creditors of the defendant who should assent in writing to its terms, and
imposes upon the plaintiffs as assignees the duty of converting the property into cash and distributing the proceeds in payment
of the debts owed by the defendant to his assenting creditors. Certain creditors of the defendant appear to have assented
to the assignment, but what proportion of them in number or amount is not shown. The will of the testator, who was a resident
of Boston, has been duly proved and allowed. There have been joined as defendants the trustees appointed under the will,
who hold trust funds of great value. The terms of that trust, set forth in clause Eighth of the will, in substance are that
the residue of the estate is given to trustees to pay the income (subject to an annuity which has come to an end) to the testator's
widow for life and his children during their lives, with other provisions as to payment of income in case of the death of
the widow or any of the children until the termination of the trust. Upon the death of the survivor of the widow and children
the trust is to terminate and the balance, subject to a gift to charity, is to be divided 'equally between the issue of my
children then living per stirpes and not per capita,' excluding one grandchild for whom provision had been made by others.
The income of the trust is subject to a spendthrift clause but there is no such provision concerning the principal of the
trust. At the date of the assignment by the defendant to the plaintiffs on September 8, 1930, there were living the widow
and four children of the testator. Three of these children never married; but the fourth married and had five children, one
of whom is the defendant and another of whom is the grandchild excluded from sharing in the principal of the trust. It is alleged in paragraph 6 of the bill that the plaintiffs are uncertain whether the interest of the defendant in the estate
of the testator is a property interest which he could assign, and whether such interest was transferred to them by his assignment.