Aurora Fire Insurance v. Johnson

46 Ind. 315
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedMay 15, 1874
StatusPublished
Cited by57 cases

This text of 46 Ind. 315 (Aurora Fire Insurance v. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Aurora Fire Insurance v. Johnson, 46 Ind. 315 (Ind. 1874).

Opinion

Buskirk, J.

This was an action by the appellee against •the appellant, upon a policy of insurance, to recover damages alleged to have been sustained by the destruction, by fire, of the insured property.

The action was commenced in the Jefferson Common Pleas. The process was served upon the local agent. In that court an appearance was entered by such agent, and a rule was taken against the appellant to answer. Upon a ■subsequent day, the appellant entered a special appearance [317]*317by Allison & Friedley, her attorneys, and moved the court to-set aside the appearance previously entered and to quash the writ; and in support of such motion certain affidavits were filed, and certificates as to the appointment of a local agent were read. The motion was overruled, and this ruling is assigned for error.

It is well settled, that such a motion and the affidavits and other papers read in support of it can only become a part of the record by a bill of exceptions. Taylor v. Fletcher, 15 Ind. 80; The Indianapolis, etc., R.R. Co. v. Wyatt, 16 Ind. 2047 Round v. The State, 14 Ind. 493, Thompson v. White, 18 Ind. 373; Whiteside v. Adams, 26 Ind. 250.

The clerk has copied into the record what purport to be such motion, affidavits, and other papers. This did not make them part of the record. The clerk has also copied in the record what purports to be a bill of exceptions, but it is not signed by the judge. The validity of a bill of exceptions-depends upon the approval and signature of the judge. 2 G. & H. 209, sec. 346; Haddon v. Haddon, 42 Ind. 378. Besides, if the bill had been properly approved and signed by the judge, it would not have put into the record the motion, affidavit, and other papers read, because they are-not copied into what purports to be the bill of exceptions,, but the blanks left are filled with references to the page of the record where such papers would be found. This did; not make them a part of the record. Kesler v. Myers, 41 Ind. 543, and authorities cited. No question is presented' in reference to such motion, as we cannot decide it without the evidence which was before the court below.

At this point, the appellant applied for and obtained a change of venue from the judge of the common pleas court, and the cause was set down for trial before the Hon. John G. Berkshire, judge of the circuit court, at a time named, in vacation of the common pleas.

At the time fixed, Judge Berkshire appeared and assumed jurisdiction of the case. The parties appeared, and the appellant demurred to the complaint, upon the grounds that [318]*318the court had no jurisdiction of the defendant, and that the complaint did not contain facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. The demurrer was overruled, and the appellant excepted.

The appellant answered in thirteen paragraphs. The appellee demurred separately to all of said paragraphs, except the first, twelfth, and thirteenth. The demurrer was sustained to the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth pax-agraphs, and the appellant excepted, and was overruled to the second, third, fourth, tenth, and eleventh, and the appellee excepted. The appellant then filed substitutes for the said fifth and tenth paragraphs, and an additional paragraph numbered ten and one-half. This leaves for review here the action of the court in sustaining the demurrer to the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth paragraphs of the answer.

The appellee filed a reply consisting of ten paragraphs. The appellant demurred to all except the fii-st. The demurrer was sustained as to the third, fifth, ninth, and tenth, to which the appellee excepted, and was overruled as to the second, fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth paragraphs, and the appellant excepted.

The cause was submitted to a jury for trial, and resulted in the finding of a general verdict for the appellee and answers to special interrogatories. The court, over a motion for a-new trial, rendered judgment on the verdict.

The evidence is not in the record, and consequently no question arises as to the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the verdict or as to the correctness of the instructions given. It is settled by a long line of decisions in this court, that if, under any supposable state of the evidence, the instructions could have been correct, it will be presumed, the evidence not being in the record, that that state did exist. See the cases supporting the above proposition, collected in note d, on page 200, 2 G. & H.

Besides, the instructions are not properly in the record or properly excepted to. They are copied into the motion for a new trial, but there is no exception noted to the giving of [319]*319each instruction at the end thereof and signed by the appellant or her attorneys. This would have been sufficient to have made the instructions and the exceptions thereto a part of the record. The Jeffersonville, etc., Railroad. Co. v. Cox, 37 Ind. 325. The appellant, however, attempted to place the instructions and her exceptions thereto in the record by a bill of exceptions, but the clerk in making out the transcript, instead of copying the instructions into the bill of •exceptions, has filled the blank intended for such insertion with a reference to the page of the transcript where they would be found. The copying of the instructions into the motion for a new trial did not make them a part of the record. Gaff v. Hutchinson, 38 Ind. 341. The reference to them in the bill of exceptions did not make them a part of the record, Stewart v. Rankin, 39 Ind. 161; Kesler v. Myers, 41 Ind. 543.

It is true the bill of exceptions says that the appellant ■excepted to the giving of certain instructions, but they not being in the record, we cannot know what they were, and the evidence not being in the record, we would be compelled to presume they were correct if applicable to any supposa■ble state of the evidence.

This leaves for our determination the action of the court dn overruling the demurrer to the complaint, the sustaining of the demurrer to the sixth,, seventh, eighth, and ninth [paragraphs of the answer, and the overruling of the demurrer to the second, fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth paragraphs of the reply.

Did the court err in overruling the demurrer to the complaint ? Two questions are presented by this demurrer:

1. Whether the court had jurisdiction of the defendant; .and,

2. Whether the facts stated in the complaint were sufficient to constitute a cause of action.

When the demurrer was filed, the cause was pending in the common pleas, the court being held by Judge Berk.shire, of the circuit court. It was admitted by the demur[320]*320rer, and is conceded here, that the court possessed full jurisdiction of the subject-matter of the action. The question sought to be raised is, whether, when the judge of the-common pleas granted the change of venue and called the circuit judge to preside and try the cause, he possessed the power to fix a time, in vacation, for the trial of said cause ?" Counsel for appellant state in their brief that the court did not possess the power to fix a time in vacation for holding-said court for the trial of this cause, but no statute or adjudged case is referred to in support of such proposition..

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Bluebook (online)
46 Ind. 315, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/aurora-fire-insurance-v-johnson-ind-1874.