De La Rue v Hernu, Peron & Stockwell Ltd     Interpleader – Property stored by wife – Claim by husband against warehouseman – Right of
warehouseman to interplead – Order directing issue between husband and wife – Jurisdiction
to make such order – Married Women’s Property Act 1882 (c 75), ss 12, 17 – RSC Ord 57,
r 7.
A wife deposited certain goods for storage with a firm of warehousemen. Her husband,
claiming that the goods were his property issued a writ in detinue against the warehousemen
for the delivery up of the goods, and obtained an order for an interim injunction restraining
them for one month from parting with possession of the goods. The wife threatened to
institute proceedings to prevent the warehousemen from delivering the goods to the husband,
whereupon the warehousemen took out an interpleader summons and an order was made by
the master staying all proceedings in the action of the husband. He further ordered that no
action be brought by either the husband or the wife against the warehousemen and that the
parties should proceed to the trial of an issue, in which the husband was to be the plaintiff and
the wife the defendant, before a master to have the ownership of the goods decided. The wife
appealed against the order contending that there was no jurisdiction in an interpleader issue to
make a husband the plaintiff and a wife the defendant. The judge in chambers dismissed the
appeal. The wife appealed to the Court of Appeal:—