Boatman's Bank v. Rogers

1936 OK 379, 57 P.2d 860, 177 Okla. 85, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 742
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedMay 12, 1936
DocketNo. 24577.
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 1936 OK 379 (Boatman's Bank v. Rogers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Boatman's Bank v. Rogers, 1936 OK 379, 57 P.2d 860, 177 Okla. 85, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 742 (Okla. 1936).

Opinion

OSBORN, V. C. J.

This action was instituted in the district court of Sequoyah county by Boatman’s Bank of St. Louis, Mo., hereinafter referred to as plaintiff, against William Rogers, John Morris, J. R. Smith, and D. P. Delaney, hereinafter referred to as defendants, as an action on a promissory note and for foreclosure of a chattel mortgage. Petitions in intervention were filed by Mrs. W. P. Norman and by Clifford Johnson and C. J. Sawyer, hereinafter referred to as interveners, in which they claimed to be the owners of certain cattle described in the chattel mortgage. No appearance was made by defendants, and the *86 issues between plaintiff and tbe interveners were submitted to a jury. The verdict of the jury was in favor of the interveners. From a judgment thereon, plaintiff appeals.

The record shows that the defendants were the agents and managing officers of the Night Hawk Keetoowah Society of Indians, an unincorporated society of Cherokee Indians engaged in banking, farming, and stock raising.

On November 12, 1919, the defendants Rogers, Morris, and Smith, as agents of the society, executed and delivered to D. P. Delaney. a chattel mortgage upon 239 head of cattle in their possession as security for a promissory note of $8,500. This mortgage and note were subsequently assigned to plaintiff. On March 6,1922, the same defendants executed to Delaney their note for $9,-000 as a renewal note for the former indebtedness, and executed a chattel mortgage to secure said indebtedness on 582 head of cattle in their possession together with the increase thereof. This note and' mortgage were likewise assigned to plaintiff.

On July 7," 1923, plaintiff instituted this action to foreclose the latter mortgage. A bond was filed and a writ of replevin issued and delivered to the sheriff, who took possession of 207 head of cattle, held them for 24 hours and delivered them to plaintiff. They were thereafter sold by plaintiff.

On July 31, 1924, an amended petition in intervention was filed -by Mrs. W. P. Norman in which it- was alleged that- on or about June 29, 1918, Clifford Johnson, acting by and through his agent, turned over, under a contract for use to the defendants Rogers, Morris and Smith, 55' head of Aberdeen Angus cows and three bulls; that by the terms of the said contract said, defendants were to care for the cows and bulls, and for pasturage and care were to receive one-half of the increase of said cattle; that said contract was to terminate at the end of five years from the date of the making thereof; that title to the original 58 head of cattle and one-half of the increase thereof should always remain in the said Clifford Johnson; that on or about May 19, 1921, Clifford Johnson and his wife sold and conveyed to the intervener a two-thirds interest in and to the original 58 head and a two-thirds ' interest in and to the one-half of the increase of said cattle, and that plaintiffs attempted to replevy said cattle and illegally sold the same to parties unknown to the intervener; that the value of said cattle purchased by the intervener from the said Johnson was the sum of $4,200. Intervener sought judgment against the plaintiff for the return of the cattle or their value.

On August 10, 1924, an amended petition in intervention was filed by ClUrjrd Johnson and C. J. Sawyer alleging the same contractual agreement hereinabove referred to. Interveners further alleged the transfer of a two-thirds interest in the cattle to Mrs. Norman and alleged a transfer and conveyance of the remaining one-third interest in said cattle to C. J. Sawyer, as trustee for Clifford Johnson. It was further alleged that the plaintiff had seized the original 58 head of cattle and 149 head as the increase thereof and had sold the same. The inter-veners prayed for a return of the cattle or judgment against the plaintiff in the sum of $2,700, the value of their alleged interest therein.

On September 19, 1929, a default judgment was entered in favor of interveners; a motion to vacate said judgment was filed; the judgment was vacated and the cause was tried to a jury. A verdict was rendered in favor of Mrs. Norman in the sum of $1,500, and in favor of C. J. Sawyer in. the sum of $1,000.

It is urged that the trial court erred in overruling plaintiff’s motion to strike the petitions in intervention, for the reason that said petitions were not filed until plaintiff had taken possession of the cattle and sold them under the power of sale contained In the mortgage; that said interveners are attempting to prosecute an action in conversion against plaintiff in this action and that such action can be maintained only as a separate, independent action. Section 158, O. S. 1931, provides:

“When, in an action for the recovery of real or personal' property, any person having an interest in the property applies to be made a party, the court may order it to be done.”

It is true that the property had been, sold by the plaintiff prior to the filing of the petitions in intervention, but, so far as the record discloses, there had been no final judgment entered in the case and it was still pending. There is, therefore, no merit in plaintiff’s contention, and the trial court did not err in permitting the filing of the petitions in intervention, and proceeding to determine the issues raised by said petitions.

Other assignments of error are that the verdict of the jury is contrary to the law and evidence; that the court erred in the admission of certain evidence; that the court erred in giving certain instructions to the *87 Jury. These assignments will be considered together. In this connection it will be necessary to notice the issues raised by the pleadings. We quote from the amended intervening petition of Clifford Johnson and C. J. Sawyer, as follows:

“Interveners further show to the court) that for a good and valuable consideration, the defendants therein did on the_day of -, mortgage to the plaintiff all of the said cattle including the interests of these interveners, and that on the __ day of-, 1924, purporting to act under authority of law and under the mortgage which was void and of no effect as against these interven-ers, plaintiff herein, Boatman’s Bank, did attempt to replevy and did illegally sell to parties unknown to these interveners 207 head of cattle, including the original 68 head and 149 increase thereof, one-third interest in 58 head thereof belonging to these interveners and one-third of one-half interest in 149 head thereof belonging to these interveners. * * *”

In the application of the intervener Johnson for permission to file his petition in intervention, it is alleged:

“The plaintiff states unto the court that he is the owner of a portion of the property upon which the mortgage is sought to be foreclosed in this case; that he denies that the mortgagors had a right to execute a mortgage, upon at least a portion of the property conveyed therein and that he desires that his right and title to the property be adjudicated in the cause.”

The allegations of the petition in intervention of Mrs. Norman were substantially the same as the allegations of the petitioner Johnson. She alleged, in part, as follows :

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Bluebook (online)
1936 OK 379, 57 P.2d 860, 177 Okla. 85, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 742, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/boatmans-bank-v-rogers-okla-1936.