Table of Contents

SECTION IX - OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE TUTOR

Art. 51. The tutor watches over the person of the minor and administers his estate;
He cannot become purchaser of the property of the minor;
He cannot accept the assignment of any right or claim against his ward.

Art. 52. The tutor is bound to administer as a good father of a family; he is responsible for all the damages which might have been either prevented or repaired by a wise administration.

Art. 53. Both the tutor and the under tutor shall prior to their entering upon the exercise of their duties, take an oath before the judge that they shall well and faithfully fulfil their trust.

Art. 54. It is the duty of the tutor to cause a true and faithful inventory to be made of the moveable and immoveable property, credits, deeds and papers belonging to the minor and to cause the said property to be valued by two appraisers duly sworn.
This inventory shall be begun at farthest within ten days after the appointment of the tutor and shall be made in presence of the under tutor, by the parish judge or by any notary public duly authorised to that effect by the said judge.

Art. 55. Every tutor except the father or mother shall give to the judge who has either appointed or confirmed him, good and sufficient security to the amount of the inventory, for the fidelity of his administration.

Art. 56. Within ten days after the conclusion of the inventory, it shall be the duty of the tutor to proceed to the sale of the moveable and immoveable property of his ward.

Art. 57. This sale shall be authorised by the judge and made at public auction, after having been duly advertised three times in both the english and french languages, to wit:- from ten to ten days for immoveables, and from three to three days for moveables, either by papers posted up at the usual places, if the sale is made out of the parish of New-Orleans, or by advertisements inserted in at least two of the news papers which are printed in the city of New-Orleans, if the sale is made within the limits of that parish.

Art. 58. The judge at the time of authorising the said sale, shall fix, with the advice of the meeting of the family, the several terms of credit at which the minor's property shall be sold, as well as the rate of interest, the securities to be given by the purchaser and the other conditions of the sale, as the case may require.

Art. 59. The minor's property cannot be sold for less than the amount of its appraised value mentioned in the inventory; and if it does not rise to that amount, it shall be again offered for sale at public auction, with the same formalities which are above directed, until the price of its apraisement may be obtained, reserving to the judge, with the advice of the meeting of the family, the faculty of extending the terms of credit granted and of giving such other facilities as may procure a short and advantageous sale of said property, and of ordering other appraisement or appraisements in case he shall be satisfied that the sale cannot be effected at the rate of appraisement already made.

Art. 60. The expences of food, maintainance and education of the minor shall not exceed his income or the interests of his funds.

Art. 61. The tutor administers by himself alone, all the deeds are made by him, and in his name, without the concurrence of the minor.

Art. 62. The tutor cannot, without an authority from the judge by and with the advice of the meeting of the family, accept or refuse an inheritance which has descended to the minor.

Art. 63. The acceptance of an inheritance which has accrued to a minor cannot be made but under the benefit of an inventory.

Art. 64. The inheritance which has been refused by the tutor with the aforesaid authority, may be resumed or accepted by the tutor by a similar authority, or by the minor when arrived at the age of majority, in case such inheritance shall not have been accepted by any other person.
But the inheritance must be taken such as it is at the time of claiming the same, and the claimant shall have no right to contest any sales or other acts which may have been legally made during the vacancy of the inheritance.

Art. 65. The tutor cannot borrow for the minor, nor enter into any transaction or compromise respecting his rights without an authority from the judge.

Art. 66. The tutor may accept legacies, donations and other advantages made to his ward; but he cannot, in any case dispose gratuitously of the moveable or immoveable property of the minor, or any part thereof.

Art. 67. Every partition of an estate in which a minor is interested, shall be ordered by the judge.
Previous to such a partition an estimation of the property must be made by appraisers appointed and sworn by the judge or by a notary commissioned in order to make the partition.
The process verbal of partition and the delivery of the slaves must be made before the notary public commissioned by the judge to that effect.

Art. 68. Every partition made in the form abovementioned is final and has the same effect against the minor, as any partition agreed to between persons of full age.

Art. 69. The tutor is bound to give an account of his administration at the expiration of the tutorship and whenever he is ordered so to do by the judge.

Art. 70. The tutor who absents himself from the territory, is bound to cause another tutor to be appointed in his stead and previously to give an account of his administration, in defect whereof he may be arrested and held to bail in such sum as the judge shall determine.
On his return the judge shall decide whether he is to resume his tutorship or not.

Art. 71. The tutor is bound to pay to his ward an interest, at the rate of five per cent. per annum, for all sums which he shall have received on his account, proceeding either from the sale of his property, recovery of his credits or otherwise, and from the time he has received such sums respectively, without being admitted to free himself from such interest, under pretence of his not having been able to lay the money out.
But the tutor may retain on the annual amount of such interest, ten per cent. as a compensation for his care and trouble and for the responsibility to which he has subjected himself.

Art. 72. The tutor is not allowed, in any case, to lay out the money of the minor in the purchase of any moveable or immoveable property; and if he makes such a purchase, it shall remain for his own account, as the object of the law by directing the sale of the minor's property, is to prevent the inconveniencies of its administration by tutors.

Art. 73. The account of the tutorship is given at the expence of the minor; the tutor advances that expence.

Art. 74. The sum which results due by the tutor as the balance of his accounts, bears interest, without a judicial demand, from the day on which the accounts were closed.
The same rule applies to the balance due to the tutor.

Art. 75. The property of the tutor is tacitly mortgaged in favor of the minor, from the day of the appointment of the said tutor, for the security of his administration and of the responsibility which results from it.

Art. 76. Every agreement which may take place between the tutor and the minor arrived at the age of majority, shall be null and void, unless the same was entered into after the rendering of a full account and delivery of the vouchers, the whole being made to appear by the receipt of the person to whom the account was rendered, ten days previous to the said agreement.

Art. 77. The action of the minor against his tutor, respecting the acts of the tutorship, is prescribed by four years, to begin from the day of the majority.




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