Henry Christian Building & Loan Ass'n v. Walton

Citations

• 181 Pa. 201
• 37 A. 261
• 1897 Pa. LEXIS 528

Syllabus

<p>Contract — Fraud—Forgery—Ratification.</p> <p>Where a transaction is contrary to good faith and the fraud affects individual interests only, ratification is allowed, but where the fraud is of such a character as to involve a crime the adjustment of which is forbidden by public policy, the ratification of the act from which it springs is not permitted.</p> <p>Mortgage — Forgery— Ratification.</p> <p>On a scire facias sur mortgage, it is not error to charge that if the mortgage upon which the action is founded is a forgery, there can be no ratification of it, because forgery does not admit of ratification.</p> <p>On a scire facias sur mortgage, it appeared that the defendant applied to a building association for a loan to pay off a ground rent. An accredited agent of the association prepared a mortgage and forged defendant’s name to it, and did not pay off the ground rent for which the loan was made. There was no evidence that the defendant had employed the agent of the association as his agent for the purpose of executing the mortgage, and he denied knowledge of its execution; but after the execution of the mortgage, on information that the loan had been secured and the ground rent paid, he made payments to the building and loan association on account of his shares and on account of interest. Held, that a .verdict and judgment for the defendant should be sustained.</p>