Atkins Pickle Co. v. Burrough-Uerling-Brasuell Consulting Engineers, Inc.

611 S.W.2d 775, 271 Ark. 897, 1981 Ark. App. LEXIS 641
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedFebruary 11, 1981
DocketCA 80-406
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 611 S.W.2d 775 (Atkins Pickle Co. v. Burrough-Uerling-Brasuell Consulting Engineers, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Atkins Pickle Co. v. Burrough-Uerling-Brasuell Consulting Engineers, Inc., 611 S.W.2d 775, 271 Ark. 897, 1981 Ark. App. LEXIS 641 (Ark. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

Tom Glaze, Judge.

The ultimate issues in this case on appeal involve venue. The appellant, Atkins Pickle Company, Inc., (Atkins) engaged the appellee, Burrough-Uerling-Brasuell Consulting Engineers, Inc., (Engineers) to design and supervise the construction of a brine storage area for cucumbers. The storage area was constructed on Atkins’ property in Pope County, Arkansas. Atkins also engaged Arkansas Erectors, Inc., (Erectors) and Arkansas Structural Products, Inc., (Structural) to assist in the construction and installation of the storage facility. The other appellee, Allen R. Henson, (Henson) an engineer and agent of Structural, participated with Engineers in the overall design and preparation of the plans and specifications for the facility.

After the storage facility was constructed and installed, Atkins contends that due to faulty design and installation, the concrete walls of the facility moved, causing it to leak brine and thereby ruin the cucumbers contained therein. Atkins filed suit in Pope County against Engineers, Erectors, Structural and Henson. Since National Surety Corporation (National) was the surety and bonding company for the performance of Structural and Erectors, Atkins also sued and joined National. None of the parties sued by Atkins are residents of Pope County nor were they served with summons in Pope County. All of the parties entered special appearances, challenging the Pope County venue. The trial court held it had venue in the actions against Erector, Structural and National but not against Engineers and Henson. Atkins appeals the court’s adverse ruling involving Engineers and Henson and raises two points for reversal.

Atkins first argues that there is joint or common liability between all of the parties it sued in Pope County and since the Pope County Circuit Court held it had venue over Erector, Structural and National, venue also exists as to Engineers and Henson.

In most cases, our Arkansas General Assembly has provided by law that a defendant must be sued in the county of his residence. The General Assembly has on occasion enacted laws which permit venue to be found in a county other than a defendant’s residence. The trial court did so in the instant case as to National, and in doing so, the court based its action on Ark. Stat. Ann. § 66-3234, which in pertinent part provides:

66-3234. Suits against insurers — Venue. — (1) An action brought in this State by or in behalf of the insured or beneficiary against an insurer as to a loss occurring or benefits or rights provided under an insurance policy or annuity contract shall be brought in either:
(a) The county in which the loss occurred, ... or
(b) The county of the insured’s residence at the time of the loss or death . . .

The court below also relied on the case of Ray Ross Construction Company, Inc. v. Raney, 266 Ark. 606, 587 S.W. 2d 46 (1979), wherein our Supreme Court construed § 66-3234, above, and held:

. . that the residence of the beneficiary on the surety bond and the county in which the loss occurred are sufficient to establish venue on a subcontractor’s complaint against a surety.

Although the case at bar does not involve a subcontractor’s suit against a surety, the trial court did apply § 66-3234 and held venue was established in Atkins’ suit against National. Moreover, the court found that the bond issued by National named and covered the performance of Erectors and Structural, and further found these two parties to be properly and jurisdictionally before the court. Atkins assumes by its argument in this appeal that the trial judge correctly applied the law in establishing venue over National, Erector and Structural, but claims the court erred only in not extending its jurisdiction to include Engineers and Henson. We do not agree.

The landmark case of Wernimont v. State, 101 Ark. 210, 142 S.W. 2d 194 (1911) is instructive in deciding the venue question at hand. The court in Wernimont stated:

It is the policy and spirit of our law, enacted into statute by our Legislature, that every defendant shall be sued in the township or county of his residence. To this general principle there are statutory exceptions, chiefly in cases where there is a joint liability against two or more defendants, residing in different counties. In such cases it is provided that suits may be brought in the county of the residence of any of the defendants, and service of summons can be had upon the other defendants in any county, thereby giving jurisdiction over their persons to the court wherein the suit is thus instituted. Kirby’s Digest, §§ 6072 [Ark. Stat. Ann. § 27-613 (Repl. 1979)] and 4558. But, before this jurisdiction can be acquired by virtue of these statutes over the person of such defendants non-resident of the county wherein the suit is instituted, it is essential that the defendant resident of the county where the suit is brought shall be a bona fide defendant. By our statute, it is further provided that, before judgment can be had against such nonresident defendant, a judgment must be obtained against the resident defendant. Kirby’s Digest § 6074 [Ark. Stat. Ann. § 27-615 (Repl. 1979)]. [Emphasis supplied.]

Since the Wernimont case, the Supreme Court has repeatedly held that in order to obtain judgment against a defendant who resides in a county other than that in which a suit is brought, the defendant must be jointly hable with a defendant who resides or is summoned in the county where the suit is filed. See Barr v. Cockrill, Judge, 224 Ark. 570, 275 S.W. 2d 6 (1955); Terry v. Plunkett-Jarrell Grocery Company, 220 Ark. 3, 246 S.W. 2d 415 (1952), and Meeks v. Waggoner, 191 Ark. 189, 85 S.W. 2d 711 (1935). In the case at bar, it is agreed that none of the parties sued by Atkins is a resident of Pope County. In fact, National is the only party against whom a summons could be issued by law and it was done pursuant to a specific statute, viz. § 66-3234 above. Atkins actually served its complaint and summons on National by having the sheriff deliver it to the Arkansas Insurance Commissioner in Little Rock as National’s agent. Whether venue was- correctly established as to National, Erector and Structural is not at issue in this appeal. For purposes of our decision, it is unnecessary for us to declide whether National was “summoned” in Pope County as that term was considered and contemplated by our Supreme Court in the cases of Wernimont, Barr, Meeks and Terry. In these cases, the Supreme Court was presented with facts wherein the law suit was filed in the county in which the defendant resided or was personally served with process. The reasoning and the decisions in these cases would not appear to be decisive of the venue issue before us. Regardless of the questions one might have concerning how venue should be established in the case before us, the law is clear that joint or common liability must exist between National, assuming it is properly “summoned” in Pope County, and the non-resident defendants, Engineers and Henson. Under the facts of this case, we find no joint or common liability exists between National, Engineers and Henson. The only liability which National could incur would arise out of whatever damages Atkins can successfully prove against and attribute to Erectors and Structural. Neither Engineers nor Henson is named in National’s surety bond.

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Bluebook (online)
611 S.W.2d 775, 271 Ark. 897, 1981 Ark. App. LEXIS 641, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/atkins-pickle-co-v-burrough-uerling-brasuell-consulting-engineers-inc-arkctapp-1981.