Bates v. Farmers State Bank

268 N.W. 74, 221 Iowa 1251
Supreme Court of Iowa·Decided June 19, 1936·No. No. 43293.·Published

Opinion

Richards, J.

On February 1, 1933, the Superintendent of Banking took over the management of the Farmers State Bank of Audubon, Iowa, under Chapter 156 of the Acts of the Forty-fifth General Assembly. This status continued until August 1, 1933, when the Superintendent was appointed as receiver. On September 6, 1933, appellee filed his claim consisting of a certificate of deposit for $18,000, bearing four per cent interest, issued by the bank on January 30, 1933, payable to appellee. The amount claimed was $18,000 principal and $360 accrued interest. On September 1, 1934, the receiver filed his report and recommendations on allowance and rejection of claims filed. Exhibit “G” of the report lists “pendent claims”, without classification, and asks that the court fix a day for hearing thereon. Among these “pendent claims” appeared that of appellee. Later objections were filed by appellee to the report and *1252 to the failure of the receiver to recommend allowance of appellee’s claim as a deposit liability. Upon a trial, the court entered an order allowing appellee’s claim in sum of $18,360 as a liability for a deposit. Therefrom the receiver has taken this appeal.

Appellant’s resistance to the claim is based on the contention that the bank received no funds from appellee at the time of the issuance of the certificate and that appellee was not a depositor of any part of the $18,000. In reply thereto appellee says that the subject matter of the transaction of the issuance of the certificate of deposit was an existing deposit of $18,000 that appellee had in the bank. Upon this issue the following evidence appears in the record.

For many years appellee had been a depositor in this bank. On June 30, 1931, among other deposits he held a certificate for $6,966.72, known as exhibit “2”, and one for $11,024, known as exhibit “3”. At about 8:30 on the morning of the mentioned date, Miss Harriet Bilharz, the bank’s cashier, meeting appellee on the street on her way to the bank, advised appellee she wished to see him. Soon thereafter appellee walked down the street and went inside the bank. In a conversation then had Miss Bilharz informed appellee that she had a party who wanted to borrow $18,000, to be secured by first mortgage upon real estate at five per cent interest, and that she would look after the matter and the drawing of the papers if appellee desired to so invest the money represented by the two certificates, exhibits “2” and “3”. Appellee expressed his approval, and to effect such real estate loan appellee, during the conference, endorsed the two certificates and turned them over to Miss Bilharz as the $18,000 to be so invested. The interest on the two certificates was calculated and the gross amount being in excess of $18,000, Miss Bilharz paid to appellee $350 in cash. This transaction was in the directors’ room of the bank, probably before the doors of the bank were opened to the public, although the bank’s vault, containing the safety deposit boxes, was open at the time. No part of the contemplated investment of the $18,000 was ever carried out.

After the above occurrence the history of the two certificates, exhibits “2” and “3” is for the most part found in the transactions of the bank as shown by its records of its banking transactions. On the bank’s journal is an entry that on July 6, *1253 1931, the certificate for $6,966.72 was paid, together with $139.-32 accrued interest. The certificate bears the bank’s “paid” stamp and was among the records of the bank when taken over by appellant. The bank’s records show that the certificate for $11,024 was canceled and marked “paid” by the bank on July 17, 1931, and that proceeds therefrom were credited to appellee’s checking account in the bank in the sum of $10,894.48. This latter amount was arrived at by adding to the principal the sum of $220.48 accumulated interest and deducting the above mentioned item of $350 interest paid June 30, 193T. After this deposit of $10,894.48 was credited to appellee’s checking account, the book entries of the bank show that on July 17, 1931, the bank charged against this accountathe sum of $5,000, and on July 18, 1931, charged the further sum of $5,894.48 which exhausted the deposit. Appellee neither authorized nor had knowledge of either of said charges made by the bank against his account, nor in fact did he know at the time that the said credit had been made to his cheeking account out of the proceeds of the certificate.

The district court held that these transactions were not effectual as a payment or discharge of the bank’s liability upon the certificates, exhibits “2” and “3”, and that appellee continued to be a depositor in the sum of $18,000 on January 30, 1933, and that at that time the certificate in controversy was issued as a continuance of the deposit, and as evidence of the deposits in lieu of the earlier certificates, exhibits “2” and “3”. Appellant says that there was error in so holding because the. record shows that Miss Bilharz, although cashier of the bank, procured the two certificates while acting in her individual capacity, and with the wrongful intent to personally benefit thereby, and appellant further claims the record shows that Miss Bilharz personally received the proceeds of the two certificates. Appellant further contends that the bank was not chargeable with any notice or knowledge of the limited authority of Miss Bilharz with respect to the two certificates, because she was acting wrongfully in her personal capacity during the conference on the morning of June 30,1931.

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Bates v. Farmers State Bank, 268 N.W. 74, 221 Iowa 1251 (iowa 1936).

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