Case Title: Hodge v. Hodge

Citation: 191 Kan. 390, 381 P.2d 329

Docket Number: 43,210

State: kansas

Court: Kansas Supreme Court

Date: 1963-05-11T00:00:00Z

Document:
191 Kan. 390 (1963)
381 P.2d 329
ROSELLA HODGE, Appellee,
v.
RAY HODGE, Appellant.
No. 43,210

Supreme Court of Kansas.
Opinion filed May 11, 1963.
James R. Barr, of Wichita, argued the cause and Clifford H. Pugh, of Wichita, was with him on the briefs for the appellant.
John W. Sowers, of Wichita, argued the cause and Clarence R. Sowers, of Wichita, was with him on the briefs for the appellee.
The opinion of the court was delivered by
PARKER, C.J.:
This is an appeal from an order overruling a demurrer to a petition to vacate a judgment allegedly obtained by extrinsic fraud.
The facts, insofar as here pertinent, are not in dispute. Since the statute of limitations is involved dates will be noted. On January 29, 1958, Ray Hodge filed an action for divorce against his wife, Rosella Hodge. On January 9, 1959, Rosella filed a cross-petition for divorce. On January 16, 1959, judgment was entered in the action granting a divorce to Rosella and approving a property settlement.
On May 7, 1959, Rosella filed a petition against Ray seeking a vacation of the judgment entered on January 16, 1959. The petition alleged facts constituting extrinsic fraud on the part of Ray in connection with the property settlement which was made a part of the judgment. Ray demurred to the petition. The demurrer was overruled on June 29, 1959. Ray appealed. In Hodge v. Hodge, 186 Kan. 361, 349 P.2d 947, this court sustained the judgment of the lower court and in the opinion said:
Thereafter, and on July 28, 1961, the case again came on for hearing in the district court and on motion of Rosella's attorney was dismissed without prejudice. The reason for the dismissal is not here material but interested readers of this opinion will find it in Hodge v. Hodge, 190 Kan. 492, 376 P.2d 822, another intermediate appeal.
On April 24, 1962, Rosella filed an amended petition in the district court in which she alleged the same facts as were set out in the original petition with the following addition:
Ray filed a demurrer to the amended petition, "... for the reason that said Amended Petition does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action ..." The demurrer was overruled. This appeal followed.
The appellant contends that an action to vacate a judgment must be brought within two years and that G.S. 1949, 60-311, has no application to the involved action.
We will first consider the applicable statutes.
G.S. 1949, 60-3007, upon which appellee bases her right to relief provides in part:
..............
*392 G.S. 1949, 60-3008, provides:
G.S. 1949, 60-3011, provides:
G.S. 1949, 60-311, on which appellee relies to avoid the limitation set out in G.S. 1949, 60-3008, provides:
In his brief appellant states his contention in the following manner:
In her brief appellee states:
Appellee makes no argument and cites no case in opposition to appellant's contention that G.S. 1949, 60-311, is not applicable to the limitation contained in G.S. 1949, 60-3008. It may be added an extended review on our part indicates there is none to be found in our decisions.
Long ago this court held, and has consistently adhered to the rule, that where a special remedy is created by statute and the statute provides its own limitation of time for commencing proceedings to obtain the special relief, the general statute of limitations *393 has no application. Where the right is special and conditional, and the condition is annexed to the statute it forms a part of the right itself. (Hamilton v. H. & St. J. Rld. Co., 39 Kan. 56, 18 Pac. 57.)
The foregoing rule was specifically and thoroughly considered in Rodman v. Railway Co., 65 Kan. 645, 70 Pac. 642, where an action for wrongful death was dismissed without prejudice after the two year statute of limitations had expired and another action was attempted to be brought within one year after the dismissal under the provisions of the statute now G.S. 1949, 60-311. In an extensive opinion, citing many authorities, the court stated:
The court in the Rodman case cited numerous foreign authorities in support of its decision. We quote in part:
For another decision, adhering to the basic fundamentals of the rule discussed in the Rodman case, see Berkley v. Tootle, 62 Kan. 701, 64 Pac. 620, where it is said:
In Medill v. Snyder, 71 Kan. 590, 81 Pac. 216, this court had under consideration the application of the rule in connection with a suit to contest a will. In that case, in describing the nature of the controversy, we said:
And at page 592 of the opinion stated and held:
In Blair v. Blair, 96 Kan. 757, 153 Pac. 544, an action was brought to set aside a decree of divorce thirty years after the decree was rendered. The petition alleged fraud in obtaining the decree which was not discovered until shortly before the action was brought. In the opinion we said:
..............
The Blair case makes it clearly appear that the provisions of the general statute of limitations do not apply to proceedings to vacate a divorce decree such as we have before us in the present case. A like ruling, under somewhat similar facts, may be found in the more recent case of Elfert v. Elfert, 132 Kan. 218, 222, 223, 294 Pac. 921.
For other cases, holding that the so-called saving statute (G.S. 1949, 60-311) has no application in proceedings having their own statutory procedure, see our recent decisions of Terrell v. Ready Mixed Concrete Co., 174 Kan. 633, 639 to 642, incl., 258 P.2d 275 (a proceeding under the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Act) and Howard v. State Highway Commission, 181 Kan. 226, 228, 311 P.2d 313 (an eminent domain proceeding).
In view of the authorities heretofore cited we are constrained to conclude that the statutory remedy for vacating a judgment is complete within itself, and designates the only exceptions to be allowed. The statute (G.S. 1949, 60-3008) designates its own statute of limitations and the general statute of limitations, including G.S. 1949, 60-311, has no application to proceeding to vacate a judgment.
The judgment of the district court is reversed with instructions to sustain the demurrer.