Duncan v. Duncan

Citations

• 265 Pa. 464
• 109 A. 220
• 1920 Pa. LEXIS 461

Syllabus

<p>Practice, Supreme Court — Appeals—Harmless error — Findings of fact.</p> <p>1. The court will not reverse the findings of fact of the court below unless clear error is shown.</p> <p>Divorce — Foreign divorce. — Recognition of decree — Appearance.</p> <p>2. An appellant cannot successfully object to a ruling which did him no harm.</p> <p>3. A divorce granted in another state, where the parties never resided together, and for causes not arising therein, is of no validity here, unless the respondent appeared to the action, or in some way recognized the alleged divorce.</p> <p>Practice, Equity —■ Replication. — Pleadings —• Trial — Husband and wife — Desertion—Abuse of discretion — Appeal—Acts of May 28, 1907, P. L. 227; April 27, 1909, P. L. 182, and July 21, 1918, P. L. 867.</p> <p>4. When a case is heard upon a bill and answer without a replication, all the material averments of the answer will be taken as true, whether responsive to the bill or new matter in avoidance thereof.</p> <p>5. Under such circumstances the court will not look beyond the pleadings.</p> <p>6. But this principle does not apply where the defendant proceeds to trial without ruling plaintiff to file a replication, as provided by the 46th Equity Buie.</p> <p>7. It is not improper to allow a replication to be filed nunc pro tune, where without calling attention to the fact that none had been filed defendant proceeded with the trial exactly as if it had been, and by his requests asked the court to decide the case upon the evidence produced.</p> <p>8. Under such circumstances it is not error to refuse to reopen the case after replication filed nunc pro tune, where defendant does not allege he was misled, and gives no reason why the case should be reopened.</p> <p>9. An application to reopen a case is addressed to the sound discretion of the court, and its decision will not be reversed except for clear error.</p>