Wardell v. Leavenworth

Headnote

Receiver. Sale.

Where a receiver had the supposed value of sixty thousand dollars of property in his power, and the amount which was likely to be required to satisfy the demands was only about one thousand dollars, the court restrained him from making sale, by auction, of the whole mass.

A receiver had been appointed on a judgment creditor’s bill; and as two other suits of the same character were after-wards commenced, the receiver became a receiver also in the latter causes. About one thousand dollars, in all, were due on the different judgments. The receiver had advertised the property assigned to him for sale by public auction. The defendant swore that the property so assigned was truly worth at least sixty thousand dollars, over and above all liens, claims, or off-sets on the same, and its value was somewhat confirmed by an accompanying affidavit.

The Vice-Chancellor had granted a preliminary order, requiring the defendant to show cause why the sale should not be stayed. The receiver showed, by his affidavit, that the principal part of the property was in mining stock and he had no means of knowing the value of it.