Donnelly v. Byers

Citations

• 234 Pa. 339
• 83 A. 296
• 1912 Pa. LEXIS 652

Syllabus

<p>Decedents’ estates — Sale of real estate — Ratification of sale — Act af April 13, 1854, Sec. 3, P. L. 368.</p> <p>1. Where executors have sold the real estate of a decedent for the payment of debts, without an order of court, the Orphans’ Court may subsequently approve, ratify and confirm such sale. The authority conferred by the third section of the Act of April 13, 1854, P. L. 368, applies to all sales, and is not confined merely to sales under the Price Act. Its application is general, and its authority may be invoked wherever the court may have previously authorized a sale or conveyance of real estate.</p> <p>2. A testator gave his trustees power to sell real estate. The executors who were also trustees executed an agreement to sell real estate for the purpose of raising money to pay debts. The deed in pursuance of, the agreement was signed by the parties as executors and trustees. No order of court was procured authorizing the sale, but subsequently a petition was filed in the Orphans’ Court praying for the ratification of the sale. All parties in interest, except one person, waived the issue of the citation, and a citation was served on this person and on all creditors of the decedent who had filed suits to preserve the lien of their debts, the statutory period of two years from the death of the decedent having then expired. All the facts necessary to give the Orphans’ Court jurisdiction were averred in the petition, and no one objecting, a decree of confirmation was entered. Subsequently the fund raised by the sale was distributed, and a dividend was paid thereout to the creditors. Thereafter the executors and trustees brought an action on a bond given by the purchaser of the real estate to secure the payment of the purchase money. Held, that the purchaser had no standing in such suit to raise any question as to the validity of the sale, inasmuch as all parties in interest and all creditors had, either by participating in the proceedings, or by the citati