Case Name: In the Matter of the Estate of Sarah Baker, Deceased. Edward Allen et al., Appellees, v. James M. Baker, Administrator, Appellant
Court: Illinois Appellate Court
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Decision Date: 1916-10-13
Citations: 202 Ill. App. 463
Docket Number: 
Parties: In the Matter of the Estate of Sarah Baker, Deceased. Edward Allen et al., Appellees, v. James M. Baker, Administrator, Appellant.
Judges: 
Reporter: Illinois Appellate Court Reports
Volume: 202
Pages: 463–465

Head Matter:
In the Matter of the Estate of Sarah Baker, Deceased. Edward Allen et al., Appellees, v. James M. Baker, Administrator, Appellant.
(Not to be reported in full.)
Appeal from the Circuit Court of Morgan county; the Hon. Norman L. Jones, Judge, presiding. Heard in this court at the April term, 1916.
Affirmed.
Opinion filed October 13, 1916.
Certiorari denied by Supreme Court (making opinion final).
Statement of the Case.
Appeal by James M. Baker, administrator of the «estate of Sarah Baker, deceased, from a judgment of the Circuit Court, affirming an order of the County Court, directing the appellant to recast and restate his final report as administrator and to charge himself with certain funds belonging to the estate.
Prior to the making of the order appealed from, certain grandchildren and heirs of the deceased had filed a petition for citation against the administrator, asking that he be compelled by the court to inventory a large amount of personal assets of the estate in his possession and not accounted for. Upon a hearing upon this petition, the County Court entered an order directing the appellant to inventory and charge himself with $2,566.34 funds belonging to the estate. From this order the administrator prayed an appeal to the Circuit Court but never perfected it. Later, the administrator filed a supplementary inventory charging himself with the sum of $2,566.34, with the notation, “For which amount the said James M. Baker claims he is not justly indebted to the estate.” Later, at a subsequent term of the County Court, the administrator filed a final report and omitted therein to charge himself with the sum of $2,566.34, to which report the appellees objected, which objection was sustained and the order appealed from was entered.
On the hearing of the appeal in the Circuit Court, the appellant filed a petition in which he requested that his final report he changed to a report current, that he be permitted to resign as administrator and that a new administrator be appointed so that he could have a trial by jury on the question whether he was indebted to the estate, which petition was denied.
Wobthington, Beevb & Gbeen, for appellant.
J. O. Pbiest and John M. Butleb, for appellees.
Abstract of the Decision.
1. Executors and administrators, § 516 —vjhen parties are not entitled, to jury trial. The practice of compelling an executor or administrator by citation to inventory and account for assets in his possession belonging to the estate of which he is executor or administrator, by virtue of sections 81 and 82 of the Administration Act (J. & A. HH 130, 131), is a proper procedure, is equitable in its nature and the parties thereto are not entitled to a jury trial.
2. Executors and administrators, § 517*—When appeal from, am, order of the County Court is properly denied. Where an administrator on a petition for citation was ordered to inventory and charge himself with certain funds belonging to the estate, from which order he perfected no appeal but later filed a supplementary inventory charging himself with such funds with the notation that he was not justly indebted to the estate therefor, and subsequently filed his final report, omitting to charge himself with such funds, held, on appeal by him from a judgment of the Circuit Court affirming an order of the County Court directing him to, recast and restate his final report and to charge himself with such funds, he having filed on the appeal to the Circuit Court a petition requesting that his final report be changed to a report current, that he be permitted to resign as administrator and that a new administrator be appointed so that he could have a trial by jury on the question whether he was indebted to the estate, that the order of the County Court, entered on the hearing of the petition for citation, being a final judgment ren dered in a proceeding in which the court had jurisdiction of the person and subject-matter and no appeal having been taken therefrom, the Circuit Court had no power to grant the relief prayed.
3ee Illinois Notes Digest, Vole, XI to XV, and Cumulative Quarterly, same topic and section number.

Opinion:
Mr. Justice Eldeedge
delivered the opinion of the court.