Bates v. Nichols

274 N.W. 32, 223 Iowa 878
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedJune 15, 1937
DocketNo. 43883.
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 274 N.W. 32 (Bates v. Nichols) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bates v. Nichols, 274 N.W. 32, 223 Iowa 878 (iowa 1937).

Opinion

Parsons, J.

On the first day of May, 1924, an agreement was entered into by the defendants T. B. Nichols, Henry Brug *879 man, B. F. Swickard and P. F. Ryan, and three other parties, all interested in the Nichols Savings Bank of Nichols, Muscatine County, Iowa, wherein the above named parties guaranteed payment on or before two years from date of certain bills receivable and any renewals of the same, and provided that the guaranty should continue in full force and effect until the bills receivable and renewals thereof had been fully converted into cash, or charged from the assets of. the corporation, with the approval of superintendent of banking.

D. W. Bates, superintendent of banking, on June 25, 1936, filed an amended and substituted petition at law in the district court of that county, against the defendants, claiming generally that certain of the notes guaranteed were still outstanding, and had not been fully converted into cash or charged off the assets of the corporation with the approval of the superintendent of banking.

The defendants filed a demurrer to this pleading, based on six grounds, unnecessary for the purposes of this opinion to be set out, and on the 28th day of March, after a hearing, the court sustained the demurrer and entered a ruling to that effect, reserving an exception to the plaintiff.

On the 18th day of April, 1936, default was entered by the court against plaintiff for costs, and was journalized and spread of record in the office of the clerk of that court. The plaintiff-appellant subsequently served notice of appeal from the order of the court and ruling on the demurrer, and the ruling wherein default and judgment were entered for failure to plead over, and against the plaintiff for costs.

So much appears from the abstract. On April 23, 1937, the defendants-appellees filed a motion to dismiss the appeal. That motion was, in brief, “For the reason that the judgment in- said Cause was paid in full by plaintiff-appellant on the 29th of April, 1936, and that no Notice of Appeal was given in this cause until the 7th day of July, 1936; and that it was a voluntary and affirmative payment by the plain tiff-appellant herein and execution was never at any time issued on said judgment.”

It appears from the showing that the judgment was entered against appellant on the 18th day of April, 1936, and was in the following language:

“Now on this day default is hereby entered against plain *880 tiff for failure to plead over after ruling on Demurrer and judgment is hereby entered for Defendants against Plaintiff for the costs of this action taxed in the sum of $18.25.” This judgment was entered by the court and included in it was the finding that made these costs a part of the judgment. Ainley v. American M. F. Ins. Co., 113 Iowa 709, 84 N. W. 504.

It also appears in the showing that on April 29,1936, D. W. Bates, superintendent of banking, and receiver of the Nichols Savings Bank of Nichols, Iowa, paid to the clerk of that court the sum of $18.25, “in full payment of the judgment for costs, and same is hereby fully settled and cancelled of record.”

The question raised by the motion is as to whether or not this payment of the costs, i. e., the judgment entered against the plaintiff, being paid by the plaintiff voluntarily without any execution having been issued, precludes the plaintiff from now going on with this appeal.

It will be observed that the judgment had been paid by the appellant prior to the service of the notice of appeal. The rule in reference to such matters varies in different courts of last resort in the several states of the Union. We feel we are bound by whatever the Supreme Court of Iowa has decided in these matters. The rule in this state seems to be that voluntary payment of a judgment by one against whom judgment is entered, precludes an appeal, and we think this rule is settled against the appellant herein, and that it is supported by the following authorities: Borgalthous v. Farmers & Merchants Ins. Co., 36 Iowa 250; Hintrager v. Mahoney, 78 Iowa 537, 43 N. W. 522, 6 L. R. A. 50; Independent Dist. of Altoona v. Dist. Twp. of Delaware, 44 Iowa 201; Bruner v. Myers, 203 Iowa 570, 213 N. W. 217; Arnold v. Wapello County, 154 Iowa 111, 134 N. W. 546; Isaacson v. Mason Motor Co. (Iowa), 157 N. W. 891; Plover Merc. Co. v. Peterson (Iowa), 111 N. W. 944; and Shorthill Co. v. Des Moines Dept. Store Co. (Iowa), 151 N. W. 65. These last three cases were per curiam opinions, and not reported in State Reports.

In the Borgalthous ease it was held that a garnishee who voluntarily pays a judgment rendered against him cannot afterward appeal. Neither can a person who was not a party to the proceeding, and took no steps to make himself such. The court in this case said:

*881 “Neither can the garnishee, Leedham, be heard to deny in this court the correctness of the judgment; By submitting thereto and discharging it by voluntary payment, he waived all errors that may have existed in the record. It would be a practice resulting in hardship, abuse and inconvenience to permit parties to appeal after fully performing the orders and judgments of the court. By the act of payment and performance they are estopped to deny the sufficiency of the adjudication against them.” And the opinion further says: “A failure to object or except to a judgment operates as an assent, to its correctness — a waiver of errors. * * * A performance is certainly an act of assent or waiver of errors, more emphatic and expressive. It has been ruled by this court that a party cannot accept the benefit of an adjudication, and yet, alleging it to be erroneous, appeal therefrom. * * * The obvious reason of this decision is, that the party’s act estops him from objecting to the judgment, having acquiesced in its performance or discharge by the other party. The same principle will cut off the right of a party defendant, after paying a judgment, to appeal therefrom. ’ ’

The Hintrager case concerned a redemption from tax sale. Application was made to the proper officer to loan the amount necessary to redeem, and being told the amount he paid it and took certificate. It was held that the redemption was valid, and subsequently deed issued to the purchaser was void.

In the Independent District of Altoona case it was held that if the party recovering the judgment accepted the amount thereof, he cannot afterward appeal.

In the Bruner case it was held that an appeal from an order requiring plaintiff to bring in certain parties as additional defendants is not maintainable when the record shows that the appellant has complied with the order. 5

In the Arnold case there was an action of mandamus to install, under the soldier’s preference law, an honorably discharged soldier of the Civil War, as janitor of the courthouse at Ottumwa. .In that case the judgment had been performed by one of the parties, and it was hence held there was nothing on which to base an appeal of the appellant because the costs were taxed to him.

There are cases cited from other jurisdictions, which we do *882

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274 N.W. 32, 223 Iowa 878, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bates-v-nichols-iowa-1937.