Case Name: Jeremiah Shuttlesworth versus James Noyes and Oliver Downs, his Trustee
Court: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Jurisdiction: Massachusetts
Decision Date: 1811-10
Citations: 7 Tyng 229
Docket Number: 
Parties: Jeremiah Shuttlesworth versus James Noyes and Oliver Downs, his Trustee.
Judges: 
Reporter: Massachusetts Reports
Volume: 8
Pages: 194–194

Head Matter:
Jeremiah Shuttlesworth versus James Noyes and Oliver Downs, his Trustee.
Where one summoned as trustee had made a promissory note payable to the wife of the defendant, for a consideration arising wholly from her property, he was adjudged the trustee of the husband.
In this case the only question made was, whether Downs should be adjudged the trustee of Noyes the defendant. — And as to this, the facts appearing from Downs’s answer were, that he, after the marriage of Noyes with his wife Martha, now living, gave a note, not negotiable, payable to the said Martha, at a future day, which had not arrived at the time of the answer by Downs. The consideration of the note was partly a debt due to the said Martha before her marriage, and partly a sum arising on the distribution of the estate of her deceased father.
Chickering for the plaintiff.
Richardson for the trustee.

Opinion:
* Sedgwick, J.,
said in substance, that the Court had a strong desire to protect this demand against attachments made by the creditors of the husband, if it could be done consistently with established principles of law; but that it was very clear that a note payable to a feme covert is legally payable to the husband, and the property vests absolutely in him. He alone, during his life, has power to enforce payment or discharge the demand; and after his death, it would go to his executor or administrator, and not to the wife. It was therefore the opinion of the Court, that this demand was well attached by this process, and that Downs must be adjudged to be the trustee of Noyes, the principal defendant.