Benham v. World Airways, Inc.

296 F. Supp. 813, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13265
CourtDistrict Court, D. Hawaii
DecidedJanuary 21, 1969
DocketCiv. No. 2346
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 296 F. Supp. 813 (Benham v. World Airways, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Hawaii primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Benham v. World Airways, Inc., 296 F. Supp. 813, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13265 (D. Haw. 1969).

Opinion

DECISION

TAVARES, District Judge.

This matter came on for trial on October 7, 1968, through October 12, 1968, jury waived, in which plaintiff H. E. Benham seeks judgment against defendant World Airways, Inc., a Delaware corporation, for breach of contract. Having heard and duly considered the testimony adduced from various witnesses in behalf of each party, the admissions contained in the pre-trial order, and the documents and other evidence adduced, the Court being now fully advised in the premises, and good cause appearing, the Court finds as follows.

Plaintiff, H. E. Benham (“Benham”), is a resident and citizen of the State of Hawaii.

Defendant, World Airways, Inc. (“World”), is a Delaware corporation having its principal place of business in Oakland, California.

The plaintiff, who is a graduate of the United State Naval Academy, was a pilot and a navigator with many years [815]*815experience in the aviation business, including experience with Pan American and Great Lakes Airways, prior to the time he came to Hawaii in 1959 as Chief Navigator for Hawaiian Airlines, and has been found qualified to testify as an expert in all matters concerning which he was permitted to testify.

In 1961 Hawaiian Airlines, which had been in the business of providing turnaround services for aircraft of other carriers transiting Honolulu, decided to go out of that business. At about the same time, Aloha Airlines decided to enter the business, and at that time a new corporation called Nav, Inc., was formed, owned 50% by Murrayair and 50% by the plaintiff, to provide such services. From early 1961 through September of 1962, that corporation conducted both ramp and office services. In 1962 the ramp services and the office services were split, with Murrayair retaining the ramp services under the name Air Service Corporation, and Benham retaining the office services which he operated under the trade name Facilities Mid-Pac, at that time. He continued to operate the office services up to and including the date of the trial. In 1966 the office services were incorporated under the name The Benham Corporation. Air Service Corporation meanwhile continued to operate the ramp services. Both, according to the testimony, were profitable, even though the volume, at the beginning at least, was quite small.

In September of 1964 'World and Trans International Airlines (“TIA”) had been performing jointly communication services for their own airlines at the Honolulu International Airport. TIA informed World that effective November 1, 1964, TIA would no longer be able to share and perform these communication services with World. As a result, World gave immediate attention to this problem of communications and also considered having another corporation or itself perform its own ground-handling services because. World had become dissatisfied with the ground-handling services of Aloha Airlines, Inc.

World at that point was doing a fair amount of business in the way of transits through Honolulu, there having been thirty-five transits in September, 1964 (Exhibit P-3). At this point of time, the other carrier was withdrawing from the arrangement it had made with World and World was looking around for someone to take over the office services or possibly to go into the business of providing turnaround services itself. To this end, Mr. Daly, President of World, among others, went through Benham’s office to look at his setup with respect to the office services. Benham was soliciting World for its business on the office service side.

Also at this time World was interested in purchasing Air Service Corporation’s assets for performing ramp services. Mr. Brian A. Cooke, a Director, Vice President and Assistant to the President of World, called Mr. Waterhouse of Air Services in England and asked him to stop by Oakland. When he did, he left with Cooke, a detailed breakdown of Air Sérvices’ assets, categorized so that those necessary in the ramp service could be separated, with the cost to Air Service of the various items. This breakdown was dated September 20, 1964. (Plaintiff’s Exhibit 34.)

On October 15, 1964 Mr. Cooke telephoned Benham to ask if he would come to Oakland, California, to discuss the capability of Benham’s firm, Facilities Mid-Pacific Co., a sole proprietorship (“FMPC”), performing the communication as well as passenger services for World. Mr. Benham accepted the invitation, and on the morning of October 19, 1964 he met with certain officers of World to explain to them FMPC’s communication and passenger services facilities. Mr. Benham met with Mr. Cooke, and Benham was asked if he was interested in selling his business to World and accepting employment with World as the head of a new handling agency to be known as World Air Center Hawaii. Mr. Benham rejected this proposal. Messrs. Benham and Cooke then met with Mr. Daly who offered the same [816]*816proposal which was also rejected. Thereupon Mr. Daly suggested that World and Benham go into business together. The parties discussed the concept of creating a World Air Center Hawaii along lines similar to the World Air Center which World was then operating in Oakland.

Mr. Daly proposed the formation of a new corporation, World Air Center Hawaii, to provide complete turnaround and ground handling services at the Honolulu International Airport. Four Directors were designated; Mr. Daly proposed that Benham be President of the new corporation at a starting salary of $18,000 per annum; that each party contribute $5,000 as initial working capital; that World arrange for the purchase of the assets of Air Service Corporation and finance the purchase out of a loan to be negotiated by World in an amount of approximately $100,000; Benham was to contribute his office services business and assets; World would contribute its transit business and seek to induce other users including Continental, TIA, Slick and those listed in Exhibit P-24 to contract services; the distribution of shares in the new corporation was to be such as to establish a 50-50 stock ownership. A rough draft or memorandum of the main terms of the agreement was prepared on October 20, 1964 by Daly and/or some of his subordinates in World, and presented by Daly to Benham, who took the draft back to Honolulu with him. Minor modifications were made thereafter by World to this rough memorandum and the modified memorandum was mailed to Benham on October 21, 1964. The changes consisted of amendments to Paragraphs 7a and b with paragraphs 8 and 9 in addition. There is no dispute that the parties did execute this written agreement as of October 20, 1964, and that the document was prepared for execution by the defendant (Exhibit P-1).1 [817]*817Further, there is no dispute that the aforesaid agreement (Exhibit P-1) was modified in writing under date of November 15, 1964, to provide that World was to acquire 51% of the stock and Benham 49% and that World would designate a majority of the Board of Directors (Exhibit P-2).2

The first question submitted for the Court’s determination is whether or not the parties had entered into a contract. The Court is of the opinion that all of the essential elements of a contract have been established by a preponderance of the evidence. In this connection the Court has considered the facts and cir[818]*818cumstances leading up to or which surrounded the parties and the contract.

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Bluebook (online)
296 F. Supp. 813, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13265, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/benham-v-world-airways-inc-hid-1969.