Hardeman v. Downer
Supreme Court of Georgia
■ Constitutional laws. Homestead. Decided by Judge Andrews. Wilkes Superior Court. April Term, 1869. John Downer applied to the Ordinary of Wilkes county for exemption of personalty, worth $ 1,000 00, and of his homestead under the Act of the 3d of October, 1869. Nine hundred and thirty acres of land, certified by the surveyor to be worth not more than $2,000 00- in gold, and his personalty were allowed him by the Ordinary.
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■ Constitutional laws. Homestead. Decided by Judge Andrews. Wilkes Superior Court. April Term, 1869. John Downer applied to the Ordinary of Wilkes county for exemption of personalty, worth $ 1,000 00, and of his homestead under the Act of the 3d of October, 1869. Nine hundred and thirty acres of land, certified by the surveyor to be worth not more than $2,000 00- in gold, and his personalty were allowed him by the Ordinary. But before the allowance was made, Plardeman had filed objections to it, upon the ground that he had a judgment against Downer which was a lien upon all of said property,…
1Opinion of the CourtMcCay, J.
1. That no State shall pass any law impairing the obligation of contracts, is the plain letter of the Constitution of the United States, Article 1, Section 10, Part 1, and without doubt it is firmly settled, by a long series of decisions, that a State can no more pass a law professing only to regulate the remedy, though in fact impairing the obligation, than it can one acting directly upon the terms of contracts.
I do not care to examine in detail these various decisions. They all in express terms admit the power of the State over the remedy, and they all decide that if this power be so used…
2Cases cited19 opinions
- Ogden v. SaundersSupreme Court of the United States · 1827
- Proprietors of the Charles River Bridge v. Proprietors of the Warren BridgeSupreme Court of the United States · 1837
- McCracken v. HaywardSupreme Court of the United States · 1844
- Satterlee v. MatthewsonSupreme Court of the United States · 1829
- McCulloch v. MarylandSupreme Court of the United States · 1819
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3Cited by7 opinions
- Franklin v. HarperSupreme Court of Georgia · 1949
- Watkins v. GlennSupreme Court of Kansas · 1895
- Moore v. LetchfordTexas Supreme Court · 1872
- Kimball v. GreigSupreme Court of Alabama · 1872
- Muscogee County Board of Tax Assessors v. Alexander Brothers Lumber Co.Court of Appeals of Georgia · 1970
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