Kinnear v. Lee

Miller, J., delivered the opinion of this Court. In exercising the power of confirming or vacating sales of real estate, on executions upon magistrates’ judgments conferred by the Act of 1831, cli. 290, the Courts do not proceed according to the forms of the common law, or under their usual and general jurisdiction, but in the exercise of a special statutory authority, to be strictly followed, and from their judgments in such cases no appeal is provided. If, therefore, the order appealed from in this case had simply vacated the sale, this Court would have no jurisdiction to review it. But where an inferior Court assumes jurisdiction, or where an order on its face appears to be partly within, and partly ⁴⁹⁰ beyond the scope of the Court’s authority, an appeal lies, and the judgment thus unwarrantably pronounced must be reversed.

Webster vs. Cockey, 9 Gill, 93 ; Bell, et al. vs. Jones, 10 Md. Rep., 331 . Upon this ground this appeal must be entertained and the order of the Court below reversed. . The constable’s return states that the appellants were the purchasers of the property, being the highest bidders therefor. The exceptant avers he was the highest bidder and objects to the confirmation of the sale, because his bid was not accepted and he not returned as the purchaser: and on this point testimony was taken on both sides.

The Court’s order “sustains the exceptions” and directs “the exceptant to pay the amount of the purchase money, with interest and costs of these proceedings.” Such an order clearly transcends the limits of the authority conferred by the statute under which the Court was acting. It does not vacate the sale, but in effect upholds it, and substitutes the exceptant as purchaser, in place of the parties named as purchasers, in the officer’s return. 'All the power the Court had over the sale was simply to confirm it as returned or set it aside. By sec. 3, of the Act of 1831, ch. 290, no title passes to the purchaser until the sale has been finally ratified as therein provided, and authority is given the Court to examine into any allegation of fraud or surprise in obtaining the judgment, and for such reasons to vacate both the judgment and sale, without prejudice to further proceedings on the original cause of action, or to vacate the sale, if the Court shall deem it to have been made unfairly