Claude v. Handy

Citations

• 83 Md. 225
• 34 A. 532
• 1896 Md. LEXIS 43

Syllabus

<p>Partition of Land— Oath of Commissioners—Sale of Part of the Land Before Partition— Validity of Award of the Commissioners— Value of the Parcels—Multifariousness—Mistake.</p> <p>A bill asking for a partition of the land of which the parties are seized as tenants in common, or for its sale if not susceptible of partition and the division of the proceeds, after payment of a mortgage debt upon part of the same, is not multifarious.</p> <p>Where a commission to make partition of land is issued to several persons, one or two of them may, if authorized by the commission, administer the oath to the others, but the better practice would be for the commission to require the oath to be administered by an officer authorized by law to administer oaths.</p> <p>When under a bill for partition it is agreed by the parties that one parcel of the land involved, which is subject to a mortgage, shall be sold, it cannot afterwards be objected that all of the real estate owned in common by the parties as heirs at law of a certain person is not included in the decree and award.</p> <p>If two tenants in common by agreement sell part of a tract of land, one of them may afterwards require a partition of the remainder if susceptible of it; and the same rule applies to separate properties.</p> <p>In an equitable partition it is not only the right but the duty of the commissioners to allot to one party such part of the property as may be more advantageous to him on account of its proximity to his other property, if it can be done without injury to the other party ; and if the properties be in several parcels the owners are not entitled to a share of each parcel, but only to an equal share in the whole.</p> <p>Where in a partition suit the parties interested name the commissioners, whose duty it was to examine the properties, place just valuations on them, and allot them fairly and equally, the Court will not set aside their award unless there be clear evidence of error on their part by which