Anglo-California Trust Co. v. Oakland Railways

225 P. 452, 193 Cal. 451, 1924 Cal. LEXIS 326
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedApril 11, 1924
DocketS. F. No. 10884.
StatusPublished
Cited by31 cases

This text of 225 P. 452 (Anglo-California Trust Co. v. Oakland Railways) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Anglo-California Trust Co. v. Oakland Railways, 225 P. 452, 193 Cal. 451, 1924 Cal. LEXIS 326 (Cal. 1924).

Opinion

WASTE, J.

This is an appeal, on the judgment-roll alone, by the Oakland Railways, one of many defendants, in an action brought by the plaintiff, as trustee of a note issue, to recover the amount of the notes and to foreclose the collateral transferred in trust to secure their payment. The findings are comprehensive, and the pertinent facts clearly appear therefrom.

The defendant Oakland Railways was the controlling stockholder of the San Franciseo-Oakland Terminal Railways, which latter corporation was formed by the consolidation of four previously existing railroad corporations. On or about the twelfth day of August, 1912, Oakland Railways executed and delivered to the plaintiff, Anglo-Califomi-a Trust Company of San Francisco, as the trustee thereunder, a certain trust agreement to secure the payment of an issue of six per cent collateral trust notes in an aggregate principal amount of $2,500,000. At the same time, as a part of the transaction, and pursuant to and in accordance with the terms of the trust agreement, the Oakland Railways made and executed one hundred notes, by the terms of each of which notes the Oakland Railways, *455 for value received, promised to pay the bearer thereof, at the office of the Anglo-Califomia Trust Company in the city of San Francisco, on the twelfth day of June, 1913, the sum of $25,000 in gold coin of the United States of America, with interest thereon from the date of such note until paid at the rate of six per cent per annum. These notes were thereafter sold by the Oakland Railways to investors, and at the time of the commencement of this action they were held by various parties. Contemporaneously with the execution of the trust agreement, and in order to secure the payment of the principal and interest of all of the notes at any time-issued and outstanding under its terms, the Oakland Railways “assigned, transferred, mortgaged and pledged” to and with the plaintiff Anglo-Califomia Trust Company the following property:

(1) 1,843 one thousand dollar, five per cent, twenty-eight year gold bonds of the Oakland Traction Company, having an aggregate face value of $1,843,000.
(2) 1,413 one thousand dollar, five per cent, thirty-year gold bonds of the San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose Consolidated Railway, having an aggregate face value of $1,413,000.
(3) A promissory note of the San Francisco-Oakland Terminal Railways for the principal sum of $2,500,000, with interest at the rate of six per cent per annum, dated August 12, 1912, originally payable to Oakland Railways or order, and by it indorsed so as to be payable to bearer. This note was secured by the entire outstanding capital stock of Oakland Terminal Company, less five “qualifying directors’ shares,” which was pledged to plaintiff to secure its payment. Prior to, or contemporaneously with, its execution and delivery to plaintiff, and as part of the same transaction, the defendant Oakland Railways guaranteed payment of the principal and interest of the note, and waived presentment, demand, protest and notice.
(4) The capital stock of the San Francisco-Oakland Terminal Railways, .class A and class B, preferred, of the par value of $4,811,200, and common stock of the par value of $13,710,000.

The defendant Oakland Railways also transferred to, deposited, and pledged with the plaintiff, as part of the property to be deposited and pledged under the trust agree *456 ment, a promissory note, dated March 15, 1912, for the principal sum of $128,184, executed by Oakland Traction Company, payable on demand to The United Properties Company of California or order, and by that corporation duly and legally indorsed so as to be payable to bearer.

A collateral trust agreement was made and executed between the defendants Oakland Terminal Company, Oakland Railways, and San Franciseo-Oakland Terminal Railways and the plaintiff Anglo-California Trust Company, as trustee thereunder, pursuant to which thirty-five notes of Oakland Terminal Company of the aggregate principal sum of $1,100,000, together with certain interest coupons, were executed and delivered by Oakland Terminal Company to Anglo-California Trust Company as trustee. Concerning this part of the transaction, the trial court found that since the commencement of the action these thirty-five notes have been paid and discharged, and the lien created by the collateral trust agreement has been extinguished.

It is provided in the trust agreement of August 12, 1912, securing the one hundred $25,000 notes, that if any one or more of certain events called “events of default” should happen, “the trustee shall have full power and authority to sell at its option the whole or any part of the collateral pledged hereunder. . . . The trustee in its discretion, however, instead of or in addition to exercising the power of sale herein conferred upon it, may proceed by appropriate action or proceedings at law or in equity as the trustee may be advised by counsel, to protect and enforce its rights and the rights of the holders hereby secured and then outstanding. Whenever the notes shall become due and payable by declaration or otherwise, upon the demand or successive demands of the trustee, Oakland Railways expressly covenants and agrees that it will pay to the trustee for the benefit of the holders of the notes then outstanding the whole amount due and payable at the time of any such demand on all of such notes for principal and interest, with interest upon the overdue principal and installments of interest at the rate of six per cent per annum; and in ease Oakland Railways shall fail to pay the same forthwith upon such demand, the trustee in its own name and as trustee of an express trust for the holders of the notes shall be *457 entitled to recover judgment against Oakland Railways for the whole amount due and unpaid.

“VI. Upon the happening of any of the events of default previously mentioned the trustee may take such action by legal proceedings or otherwise for the collection or enforcement of such collateral as to it may seem wise or proper.”

No part of the principal sum of the one hundred promissory nc-tes issued by defendant Oakland Railways was paid. Neither was any payment made on the principal of the promissory note executed by San Francisco-Oakland Terminal Railways to the Oakland Railways. In due time plaintiff, as trustee, gave notice of the nonpayment of the notes, and made written demand upon the defendant Oakland Railways for the benefit of the holders of all of the notes then outstanding that it pay the aggregate principal sum of the notes, together with accrued interest. Payment not being made, the holders of a majority of the face amount of the notes requested the Anglo-Califomia Trust Company, as trustee, to declare the principal of the notes to be immediately due and payable, and to make demand for the payment thereof, and to institute this action, all of which acts were done by the plaintiff in the manner and at the times provided by the trust agreement, and subsequent to the making of such requests.

The only defendants to appear in the action were Oakland Railways and The United Properties Company of California. They appeared by an unverified general denial.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
225 P. 452, 193 Cal. 451, 1924 Cal. LEXIS 326, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/anglo-california-trust-co-v-oakland-railways-cal-1924.