Legal Opinion

Shatney v. Shatney

Supreme Court of New Hampshire

Decided April 2, 1912PublishedCited by 1 opinion

Libel for Divorce. After the defendant had begun proceedings for divorce on the ground of desertion, the plaintiff filed this libel, in which she describes herself as a resident of Maine, charges her husband with extreme cruelty, and prays for a divorce, alimony, and the custody of their minor children. She admits that she left her husband, but says that he drove her away.

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Libel for Divorce. After the defendant had begun proceedings for divorce on the ground of desertion, the plaintiff filed this libel, in which she describes herself as a resident of Maine, charges her husband with extreme cruelty, and prays for a divorce, alimony, and the custody of their minor children. She admits that she left her husband, but says that he drove her away. At the September .term, 1911, of the superior court, the libel was dismissed by Pike, Jl, for want of jurisdiction, and the plaintiff filed a bill of exceptions.

1Opinion of the CourtYoung, J.

The matter in issue in a cause of this kind is the status of the parties (Ditson v. Ditson, 4 R. I. 87), and the only jurisdiction the court has of such a cause is that conferred upon it by statute. Parsons v. Parsons, 9 N. H. 309, 317. Consequently, the test to determine whether it has jurisdiction of the plaintiff’s libel is to inquire whether the allegations are sufficient to bring it within the provisions of sections 3 and 4, chapter 175, Public Statutes. As those sections have been construed, the libelant must be a resident of this state at the time the libel is filed. Kimball v.…

2Cases cited3 opinions

  1. Burgess v. BurgessSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1902
  2. Kimball v. KimballSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1885
  3. Sworoski v. SworoskiSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1908

3Cited by1 opinion

  1. Jones v. JonesSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1941

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