Bridgers v. Howell

Citations

• 27 S.C. 425
• 3 S.E. 790
• 1887 S.C. LEXIS 147

Syllabus

<p>1. At common law, the services of a wife belong to her husband, and therefore her earnings' — the acquisitions made by such services — also belong exclusively to the husband; and there is nothing in the constitution or statutes1 of this State to affect this common law principle.</p> <p>2. Where a husband purchases property in his wife’s name with her earnings, the property so purchased may be subjected to the payment of debts of the husband, then existing.</p> <p>3. The Court of Common Pleas has no original jurisdiction to set off a homestead, but it has jurisdiction in the course of a proceeding otherwise properly before it, to adjudicate simply the right to homestead.</p> <p>4. Where a debtor puts his money into a house and lot purchased from another, but has the deed made to his wife, his creditors have the right to follow these funds, but have no right to the property itself.</p> <p>5. In such case there is no resulting trust to the husband, for he intended a gift, and therefore he has no estate in the property, either legal or equitable, out of which he is entitled to claim a homestead.</p> <p>6. It may be that a homestead may be claimed in real estate to which the debtor has only an equitable title.</p> <p>7. AYhcre a debtor uses his own money in the purchase of a lot of land in his wife’s name and for her benefit, his creditors cannot follow and subject to their claims so much of this money as the debtor was entitled to retain as his personal property exemption.</p> <p>8. Defendant cannot, on appeal, demand that the proceeds of sale should go to all his creditors and not to the plaintiff only, when no such point w'as raised on Circuit, no demurrer interposed for defect of parties, and no application made by defendant to require other creditors to be called in.</p>