Hunter v. Stoneburner

Citations

• 92 Ill. 75

Syllabus

<p>1. Process—sufficiency of service. A sheriff’s return upon a summons on a petition for partition, issued under the laws in force in 1851, was: “I have executed this, the within writ, on A B, etc., children of O D, deceased, and E F, by reading, this 13th day of October, A. D. 1851: ” Held, this was sufficient to show a valid service upon E F by reading the process to him, and to give the court jurisdiction of his person.</p> <p>2. Same—impeaching officer’s return of service. It is in rare cases, only, that the return of an officer showing service of summons can be contradicted, other than in a suit against the officer for a false return. An exception to the rule is, where some other portion of the record contradicts the return, but the return can not be contradicted by evidence dehors the record.</p> <p>3. Where a decree finds there was due service- of process, it is binding, unless contradicted by the record itself; and such finding, as well as the officer’s return, can not be impeached by the oath of the person on whom the service appears to have been made.</p> <p>4. Purchaser—not affected by the fraud of his grantor. A purchaser of land, without notice of any alleged fraud on the part of his grantor in certain legal proceedings through which he acquired one-half of his title, and without notice of anything to put him upon inquiry to ascertain if there was any such fraud, will be protected in his purchase as against the person claiming to have been defrauded.</p> <p>6. Same—what is notice of fraud in his grantor. A purchaser of land will be presumed to have examined the title, and if there was anything in any link of the chain of title showing fraud, or such circumstances as would put a prudent man on inquiry for fraud, he will be charged with notice of fraud, if any existed.</p> <p>6. Tenant in common—right to partition not defeated by being made executor of his co-tenant’s will. Where one tenant in common of lands occupied in common devised his half interest