City of Hutchinson v. Hutchinson

Citations

• 92 Kan. 518
• 141 P. 589
• 1914 Kan. LEXIS 269

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>1. Laches — No Bcur to Relief Where Parties are Not Prejudicially Affected by the Delay — Foreclosure of Mortgage. The . doctrine of laches is equitable in character, and mere lapse of time is not a bar to relief when the rights of the parties to the suit have not been prejudicially affected by the delay, the rights of innocent third persons will not be prejudicially affected, and nothing has occurred to create an equitable estoppel against the moving party or to create an equity in favor of his adversary.</p> <p>2. Same — Right of Action Suspended by Legal Proceedings— Tolls- Statute of Limitations. Where the character of legal proceedings is such that the law restrains one of the parties from exercising a legal remedy against another, the running of the statute of limitations applicable to the remedy is postponed, or, if it has commenced to run, is suspended, during the time the restraint incident to the proceedings continues.</p> <p>3. Same. A claimant of title to mortgaged premises brought suit in 1891 to quiet title against the mortgagor and to cancel the mortgage, which had not matured. The mortgagor removed the cause to the circuit court of the United States.. In 1897 the cause was remanded to the state court, where it was neglected by all parties for ten years. In 1908 a grantee of the mortgagor procured a judgment in his favor, quieting his title against the plaintiff, but no judgment was taken against the mortgagee, who had answered in the suit that the mortgage was a lien on the land in controversy. In 1910 the assignee of the mortgage was granted leave to file a cross-petition, in which foreclosure was prayed for. Held, the remedy was not barred by laches or by the five-year statute of limitations.</p>