Beck v. O'Dell

140 N.E. 527, 193 Ind. 386, 1923 Ind. LEXIS 89
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedJune 27, 1923
DocketNo. 24,379
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 140 N.E. 527 (Beck v. O'Dell) 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
Beck v. O'Dell, 140 N.E. 527, 193 Ind. 386, 1923 Ind. LEXIS 89 (Ind. 1923).

Opinion

Willoughby, C. J.

Appellee Ella O’Dell filed her complaint in the Cass Circuit Court, against appellees, Ora C. O’Dell, Lillie O’Dell and appellant, Claude D. Beck, to recover $950 on a certain promissory note executed by said defendants to plaintiff in the principal sum of $800 dated October 20, 1905, due one year after date with six per cent, interest, and attorneys’ fees. It appears that the interest had been paid up to October 20, 1912.

The complaint was in the usual form, alleging that the note was due and unpaid and that it provided for attorneys’ fees, closing with a demand for judgment for the amount of the principal and interest due, together with $150 attorneys’ fees. To this complaint, all of said defendants filed a joint and several answer in four paragraphs: First, general denial; second, payment; third, no consideration; and fourth, the alleged acceptance by plaintiff from defendants, appellees, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell of a new note of $900, covering the principal and accrued interest of the note sued thereon and in payment thereof. A reply was filed to the second, third and fourth paragraphs. All of the defendants filed a fifth paragraph of answer, to which a demurrer was sustained. The appellant, Claude D. Beck, also filed a separate sixth paragraph of answer in which, he alleged that appellee Ella O’Dell had, on August 27, 1912, entered into a written contract with appellees, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell, principals on the note, by which the time of the payment of the note sued upon was extended for a valuable consideration and without his consent and that he was surety only on [389]*389said note. Appellant, Claude D. Beck, then filed a seventh paragraph of separate answer. The seventh paragraph of answer is founded upon the written contract set up in his sixth paragraph of separate answer but alleges that said written contract is incomplete, and that concurrently therewith, as a part of the samé transaction and as supplemental thereto, plaintiff and said defendants, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell, entered into an oral contract by which plaintiff agreed that she would not enter any suit upon the note sued upon until on and after October 20, 1915, and by which plaintiff extended the time for the payment of said note to said October 20, 1915, all of which was for a valuable consideration passing between said parties.

The defendant, Claude D. Beck, filed an eighth paragraph of separate answer in which he alleges that he executed the note as surety only for defendants, O. C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell. That hé received no consideration for the execution of said note. That said note represents money loaned to said defendants, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell by plaintiff. That at the time of the execution of said note, the plaintiff knew that he was surety only. He further says that the principals paid a portion of interest on said note but did not pay the interest in full and had paid no part of the principal. . That in August, 1915, after said note became due, said defendants, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell entered into negotiations with the plaintiff for the extension of the time of payment on said note sued on. That it was agreed between plaintiff herein.and said defendants Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell that the plaintiff would accept a-new note in payment of the noté sued on herein and accumulated interest thereon, which note should be in the sum of $900, dated - October 1, 1915, to be paid on or before three years after that date, with interest at six per cent, per annum from date. [390]*390That it was agreed by the parties that the $900 note should be a renewal and extension of the $800 note sued on herein and unpaid interest thereon and that said interest would bear interest from date of said new note and that, as a further inducement and consideration for the extension of time, the said Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell agreed to execute a written assignment of all the interest of said Ora C. O’Dell in and to the estate and property of E. A. O’Dell, mother of Ora C. O’Dell, who was then living and who owned real estate and personal property of considerable value, located in Carroll County, Indiana. It was further agreed that defendant Ora C. O’Dell should maintain all the life insurance which he then had on his life and assign the same to the plaintiff herein and grant the plaintiff herein a lien on such life insurance and all other property which he might have and also'the interest of defendant Lillie O’Dell as additional security on said note. That Ora C. O’Dell then had in full force on his life policies 4pf insurance in solvent companies, amounting to about $4,000, on which the premiums had been kept fully paid and which had been in force five or six years. A contract to this effect was executed in writing by Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell, dated September 13, 1915; at the same time the defendants, Ora C. O’Dell and Lillie O’Dell, executed their promissory note dated October 1, 1915, in the sum of $900 payable three years afterward to Luella O’Dell, which note bore interest at six per cent, per annum from date. That said defendant Ora C. O’Dell and his wife, Lillie O’Dell, gave and delivered said written instrument as aforesaid and said promissory note executed by them as aforesaid to plaintiff herein, which written note was received and accepted by plaintiff herein as full settlement for the note sued on. This defendant alleges that he had no knowledge of the making of said contract between plaintiff [391]*391and said defendants nor of the execution or making of said new note for $900, nor of the extension of time of payment of said note as aforesaid and never consented to the same, either directly or indirectly; that he did not learn of said arrangement or any part thereof until after the commencement of this action.

A demurrer severally interposed to the sixth, seventh, and eighth paragraphs of the separate, answer of appellant was sustained as to the sixth and seventh and exceptions taken. The demurrer to the eighth paragraph of answer was overruled and appellee Ella O’Dell filed a reply in general denial. Appellant Claude D. Beck then filed a cross complaint against all of the appellees, alleging that he executed the note sued on as surety only. The appellees filed answer in general denial to this cross-complaint. The case was then at issue on the complaint, the first, second, third, and fourth paragraphs of several answers and replies thereto, and the eighth paragraph of separate answer of appellant and reply thereto and upon appellant’s cross-complaint and answer in general denial thereto. The cause was submitted to a jury upon the issues so formed. At the conclusion of the evidence appellee Ella O’Dell moved the court to direct the jury to return a verdict in her favor, which motion was sustained by the court, to which appellant and his codefendants separately and severally excepted. The court gave the following instruction, requested by the plaintiff, appellee Ella O’Dell: Instruction No. 1: “Gentlemen of the jury, you are instructed to return a verdict in this case in favor of plaintiff against the defendants, Ora C. O’Dell, Lillie O’Dell and Claude D. Beck and assess the amount of her recovery at the full amount of the principal and interest due on the note and the attorneys’ fees proven by the evidence, which amounts to $1063.60, principal and interest on the note sued on and $213 attorneys’ [392]*392fees.” To the giving of which instruction, appellant at the time excepted. ,

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Steiner, D/B/A S. & G. Ex. Co. v. Goodwin, Admx.
215 N.E.2d 361 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1966)
State Ex Rel. Ensley v. Superior Court Etc.
159 N.E.2d 115 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1959)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
140 N.E. 527, 193 Ind. 386, 1923 Ind. LEXIS 89, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/beck-v-odell-ind-1923.