Riddlesberger v. Mentzer
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
ERROR to the common pleas of Franklin county. Elizabeth Mentzer against John Riddlesberger. Action of dower. Daniel Mentzer, the husband of the plaintiff, was seised in his lifetime, and during coverture, of a tract of land, for the sale of which, on the 3d of July 1819, he entered into articles of agreement with Catherine Mentzer, at 90 dollars per acre, and received part of the purchase money and delivered the possession, but executed no deed.
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ERROR to the common pleas of Franklin county. Elizabeth Mentzer against John Riddlesberger. Action of dower. Daniel Mentzer, the husband of the plaintiff, was seised in his lifetime, and during coverture, of a tract of land, for the sale of which, on the 3d of July 1819, he entered into articles of agreement with Catherine Mentzer, at 90 dollars per acre, and received part of the purchase money and delivered the possession, but executed no deed. After his death in 1820, John Bittinger, his administrator, presented a petition to the court of common pleas for leave to prove the contract and…
1Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the Court was delivered by
Gibson, C. J.
The act of 1792 was passed to invest the personal representative, whom I shall call the administrator though he may be an executor, with the power and capacity of the vendor. The mischiéf was that his death, when bound to tender a conveyance before action brought for the purchase money, was a virtual dissolution of the contract; for the administrator could not compel the heir to convey, nor could he, proprio vigore, convey himself. In the removal of that impediment, the object was to enable willing parties, and to compel an unwilling one,…
2Cited by7 opinions
- Aiple-Hemmelmann Real Estate Co. v. SpelbrinkSupreme Court of Missouri · 1908
- Porter v. LazearSupreme Court of the United States · 1883
- Riesz's AppealSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1873
- Ives v. CressSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1847
- Chess's AppealSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1846
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