Alliance Trust Co. v. Hubbard

171 P. 550, 87 Or. 669, 1918 Ore. LEXIS 309
CourtOregon Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 12, 1918
StatusPublished

This text of 171 P. 550 (Alliance Trust Co. v. Hubbard) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Oregon Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Alliance Trust Co. v. Hubbard, 171 P. 550, 87 Or. 669, 1918 Ore. LEXIS 309 (Or. 1918).

Opinion

Mu. Justice Bean

delivered the opinion of the court.

After reading the 411 pages of typewritten testimony, much of which is immaterial, and a recitation of ■ which would be of no value to anyone, we will consider the plaintiff’s appeal before taking up those of the defendants, Welch Brothers, and John Bayne. As to the premiums for the insurance it is shown that while it would have been possible to obtain a less rate, that paid by the plaintiff was the regular rate for property of that kind in the City of Salem at that time. It may be that the plaintiff could have obtained insurance for a term of three years at a less rate, and Mrs. Hubbard complains that this was not done. It is nowhere shown,' however, that at the time of her request for insurance she suggested that the plaintiff obtain an insurance policy for a longer time, and it does not appear that plaintiff was aware that a long time would elapse before the matter would be in some way adjusted. The amount of insurance premiums of $927 paid by plaintiff according to the terms of the mortgages was reasonable as a valid claim to be added to plaintiff’s mortgages and is allowed. According to the judgment of practicing attorneys, the evidence as to a reasonable sum for attorney’s fees, foreclosing the three mortgages for the principal sums of $70,000, and interest and insurance premiums, was 5 per cent on the amount due, for services in the Circuit Court, and from $300 to $1,000 in case of an appeal. Con[675]*675sidering all the facts relating to plaintiff and the various defendants we think the reasonable amount to be allowed plaintiff for attorney’s fees in this suit is $2,500. November 1, 1917, the time limited by the lower court for the issue of execution has passed and the matter need not be considered at length. Plaintiff was entitled to have execution issue.

1. It appears from the record that pursuant to the stipulations of the mortgages the court appointed a receiver to take charge of and collect the rents and profits of the mortgaged property; that the rents have been collected; and the current expenses of the property have been paid by the receiver. It will be necessary for the trial court to ascertain the amount which the receiver has to apply upon plaintiff’s mortgages, and the suit will therefore be remanded to the Circuit Court for a final decree to be entered, after making a deduction of the amount available for such purpose.

Mortgage of Defendants, Welch Brothers.

On May 28, 1912, defendant, Fannie E. Hubbard, made a contract with defendants, Welch Brothers, for the construction of the Hubbard Building which they immediately commenced. Afterwards the contract was modified and two additional stories, with other alterations, were added to the building. The agreement then was that Welch Brothers should construct the building for the actual cost thereof plus $4,800 commission. It was completed about January 1, 1913, when Mrs. Hubbard and Welch Brothers had a settlement as to its cost. On January 29, 1913, Welch Brothers filed a mechanic’s lien for the balance which they claimed to be then due therefor. Mrs. Hubbard made some payments before February 18, 1913, when she and Welch Brothers entered into an agreement that [676]*676the cost of the building under the terms of the contract for the construction thereof, including commission to the contractors, amounted to $74,016.74 and that there had been paid on account thereof $55,584.57, leaving a balance due Welch Brothers of $18,432.17; that Mrs. Hubbard would pay interest on such balance at the rate of 8 per cent per annum from the date of filing the lien; and that Welch Brothers would defer the foreclosure of such lien for five months' from the date of filing the same. This was in order to give Mrs. Hubbard an opportunity to secure the money for the payment of the balance. Subsequently Mrs. Hubbard paid $20 to the Oregon Art Tile Company which was credited upon the balance, leaving $18,412.17. Mrs. Hubbard was unable to secure sufficient money to pay Welch Brothers, but obtained an agreement from the plaintiff to loan her $10,000 to be paid them and to be secured by its third mortgage provided Welch Brothers would release their mechanic’s lien and take a note secured by a fourth mortgage for the amount due after applying the $10,000. A written agreement that this should be done was entered into on July 26, 1913, and on July 28, 1913, after the payment of the $10,000 to Welch Brothers, it was ascertained that the balance due them from Mrs. Hubbard was $9,148.65, and Mrs. Hubbard executed to them a note and mortgage to secure the payment of the amount. Mrs. Hubbard paid interest to Welch Brothers on that note and mortgage to January 28, 1915, but failed to pay the interest due July 28th of that year. On August 30, 1915, Welch Brothers filed their answer and cross-complaint setting up their note and mortgage. No answer was filed to this cross-complaint until April 21, 1916, when by leave of court Mrs. Hubbard answered it. The mortgage of Welch Brothers covered the in[677]*677come of the mortgaged premises as well as the premises themselves. In her answer Mrs. Hubbard set up that she had paid Welch Brothers over $65,000 on account of the construction of the building for which they had never accounted to her, and that by misrepresentations and misstatements they induced her to sign such note and mortgage to them and that she believed that if an accounting were had it would appear to the court that they misappropriated funds and that she was not indebted to them in any sum. This was denied by the reply. Defendants Welch Brothers were required by the trial court to make another accounting which they did. There are no facts or circumstances alleged in the answer to Welch Brothers’ cross-complaint sufficient to impeach the note and mortgage. Passing this, however, the evidence which we have carefully weighed shows that the main difficulty in the construction of the building was that it cost more than Mrs. Hubbard expected and perhaps she was unable to realize from the income the amount she had expected to be able to apply to the satisfaction of the indebtedness. The evidence, the several settlements, and the accounting made in the trial court show that the business was conducted on her behalf in a fair business-like way. The money paid by Mrs. Hubbard to Welch Brothers and the balance due them, for which the note and mortgage were given, are shown to have been expended in the construction of the building, with the exception of their commission of $4,800. Much of the material for the building was purchased from reliable business concerns at competitive prices. Mrs. Hubbard had the services of an architect against whom there is no complaint, and the erection of the structure was superintended under his direction during all the time consumed in its construction. Mrs. Hubbard [678]*678understood all the facts and circumstances relating to the construction of the building at the time of the settlements which were evidenced by written agreements with Welch Brothers, as well as she or any of her witnesses did at the time of the taking of the evidence. There is in evidence some random guesses made by contractors to the effect that they estimated the cost of the third and fourth stories of the building at a much less figure than the actual cost. There were also figures made by a contractor estimating the cost of the two additional stories from the plans and specifications. Important changes were made in these plans. They were not followed in the construction. A portion of the first story was constructed for a depot for the Oregon Electric Bailway Company.

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Bluebook (online)
171 P. 550, 87 Or. 669, 1918 Ore. LEXIS 309, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/alliance-trust-co-v-hubbard-or-1918.