A. R. LIVINGSTON, APPELLANT,
v.
LORENA POWERS AND FRANK J. POWERS, APPELLEES

Fla. | 1923-02-26
Taylor, C. J., and Ellis, Browne and West, J. J., concur.
85 Fla. 254 Florida Supreme Court (1923) Positive Treatment
Cited by 10 cases

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Synopsis

A married woman's separate property cannot be subjected to a lien for labor performed by her husband unless the wife had knowledge and consent to the work. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of a bill in equity seeking to charge a wife's wild, unoccupied land for clearing labor contracted by her husband without her authorization.


Holding

A married woman's separate property cannot be charged for labor bestowed upon it unless it clearly appears from the facts and circumstances that the labor was used or bestowed upon the property with her knowledge or consent. The principles permitting such charges do not extend to wild and unoccupied land merely because the husband has statutory care and management of the wife's property.


Key Quotes

“the same shall not be liable for the debts of her husband without her consent given by some instrument in writing, executed according to the law respecting conveyances by married women”

Establishes the constitutional protection of a married woman's separate property from liability for her husband's debts

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Facts & Procedural History

The plaintiff sought to subject wild, unoccupied real estate owned by a married woman as her separate property to a lien for labor costs incurred in c…

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Opinion of the Court
Whitfield, J.

Whitfield, J.

A bill in equity was brought to subject described real estate, the separate property of a married woman, to the payment of amounts due for labor used in clearing trees and stumps from the real estate, it being wild and unoccupied land, and the expenditures for the labor having been made at the instance of the husband. By answers the liability of the married woman for the alleged expenditure was challenged on the ground that she had not contracted for or authorized her husband to contract for the labor to be performed on the land and had no knowledge of and had not-assented to the use of the labor on her property. Testimony was taken and the bill of complaint was dismissed on final hearing.

The constitution contains the following:

“All property, real and personal, of a wife owned by her before marriage, or lawfully acquired afterwards by gift, devise, bequest, descent, or purchase, shall be her separate property and the same shall not be liable for the debts of her husband without her consent given by some instrument in writing, executed according to the law respecting conveyances by married women.”

“A married woman’s separate real or personal property may be charged in equity and sold, or the uses, rents and profits thereof sequestrated for the purchase money thereof; or for money or thing due upon any agreement made by - her in writing for .the benefit of her separate, property; or for -the price of any property purchased by. her, or for labor.- and material used with her knowledge or assent in the construction of buildings, or' repairs, or improvements upon her property, or for agricultural or other labor bestowed thereon, with her knowledge and consent. ’ ’ Sees. 1 and 2, Art. XI.

Section 3948, Revised General Statutes, 1920, provides that “the property of the wife shall remain in care and management of the husband but he shall not charge for his care and management, nor shall the wife be entitled to sue her husband for the rent, hire, issues, proceeds or profits of her said property.”

The principles announced in the case of Craft v. American Agricultural Chemical Co., 81 Fla. 55, 87 South. Rep. 41, will not be extended so as'to subject the separate property of a married woman to payment for “labor bestowed” “upon her propex-ty, ” which is wild and uxxoccupied land, merely because under the statute the husbaxxd has the “care and management” of “the property of the wife,” where it does not clearly appear from the facts and circumstances in evidence that the labor for which compensation is sought, was “used” or “bestowed” “xxpon her property” “with her kxxowledge or consent.” In the Craft ease the max-ried woman’s property was subjected because it clearly appeared that the “material” was purchased and “used-with her knowledge or assent” oxx a bearing orange grove on which the husband lived and which he cultivated and improved while acting as hex-agent, the express knowledge and assent of the wife to the-purchase and use of the material on her separate property for its benefit appearing by the evidence.

In this case the circumstaxxces are quite different. There was no purchase of property; and it does not satifactorily appear that the labor was “used” or “bestowed” upoxx his wife’s property “with her knowledge or consent.” Thomas Co. v. Daugherty, 68 Fla. 305, 67 South. Rep. 105. The chancellor so found. See 80 Fla. 679, 87 South. Rep. 63.

Affirmed.

Taylor, C. J., and Ellis, Browne and West, J. J., concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Blood v. Hunt, 97 Fla. 551 (Fla. 1929)
    …nding contracts. Harwood v. Root, 20 Fla. 940, 960; Va. Ca. Chem. Co. v. Fisher, 58 Fla. 377, 50 So. R. 504; Bailey v. Smith, 89 Fla. 303, 103 So. R. 833; 107 So. R. 350; McGill v. Art Stone Con. Co. 57 Fla. 498, 49 So. R. 539; Livingston v. Powers, 85 Fla. 254. 95 So. R. 622. This remedy in equity was not available where mortgage liens upon a married woman’s separate property were given in accordance with the statutes, since such liens were [*574] enforceable by foreclosure proceedings. See Frosem v. Cap…
  • Smith v. Chapman, 116 Fla. 576 (Fla. 1934)
    …ing & Coffin Co., 80 Fla. 679, 87 Sou. Rep. 63. [*580] A married woman’s separate real or personal property may also be charged in equity and sold for agricultural or other labor bestowed thereon with her knowledge and consent. Livingston v. Powers, 85 Fla. 254, 95 Sou. Rep. 622; King v. Hooton, 56 Fla. 805, 47 Sou. Rep. 394. But a married woman, not a free dealer, has no general contractual capacity in this State, so the promissory note of a married woman is per se void. Tresher v. McElroy, 90 Fla. 372, 1…
  • Davis v. Battle, 132 Fla. 240 (Fla. 1938)
    …ontracts. Harwood v. Root, 20 Fla. 940, 960, Va. Ca. Chem. Co. v. Fisher, 58 Fla. 377, 50 So. Rep. 504; Bailey v. Smith, 89 Fla. 303, 103 So. R. 833, 107 So. Rep. 350, McGill v. Art Stone Con. Co., 57 Fla. 498, 49 So. Rep. 539; Livingston v. Powers, 85 Fla. 254, 95 So. Rep. 622.” In Blodgett v. Steinmetz, supra, this Court held that the married woman’s separate property was increased by receipt of a forfeiture of the deposit in the sum of $1250.00 brought about by the activity of the real estate broker in…

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