Boone v. General Shoe Corp.

242 S.W.2d 138, 219 Ark. 340, 1951 Ark. LEXIS 518
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJuly 9, 1951
Docket4-9541
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 242 S.W.2d 138 (Boone v. General Shoe Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Boone v. General Shoe Corp., 242 S.W.2d 138, 219 Ark. 340, 1951 Ark. LEXIS 518 (Ark. 1951).

Opinion

Paul Ward, J.

The General Shoe Corporation is domiciled in the State of Tennessee and is authorized to do business in Arkansas, and as such is engaged in the wholesale distribution of shoes. Mrs. Pearl Boone is the owner, or at least the principal owner of “The Jacqueline Shop” and under this business name is engaged in the retailing of ladies ready to wear in Drew County at Monticello, Arkansas. One J. E. Jones is also doing business—apparently engaged in selling shoes-—in ‘ ‘ The Jacqueline Shop” in the same room and building, using the same entrance, but his relationship to “The Jacqueline Shop” and to Mrs. Pearl Boone is not clearly established.

On August 21, 1950, the General Shoe Corporation, appellee, filed a complaint in the Drew County Circuit Court against Mrs. Pearl Boone, J. E. Jones, and “The Jacqueline Shop”, making the following allegations: It is advised, believes and alleges that Mrs. Pearl Boone and J. E. Jones are the owners and operators of “The Jacqueline Shop ’ ’ and are engaged in the retailing of ladies ready to wear and ladies shoes; it sold to “The Jacqueline Shop” through its agent or partner J. E. Jones during the period beginning in July, 1949, through October 20, 1949, goods to the value of $2,092.17 and the defendants owe a balance of $1,989.90. An itemized statement marked “Exhibit A” is attached to the complaint. It sold said goods with the understanding and belief that J. E. Jones was a partner or agent of “The Jacqueline Shop”;'that the merchandise was shipped to “The Jacqueline Shop” and accepted by it in that name until on October 20, 1949, when Mrs. Pearl Boone gave notice that she was not liable for the debts of the said Jones; that it relied on the credit of “The Jacqueline Shop” and treated it as principal to the contracts of sale and shipped direct to it in that name. After receiving the notice referred to above it sold to J. E. Jones merchandise to the value of $457.53 of which amount $40.83 has been paid, leaving due from Jones $416.70. It was led to believe that J. E. Jones was acting as agent of or a partner with the defendant, Mrs. Pearl Boone, because the shoe department and ladies ready to wear depart- . ment are both operated as one business, in the same building, and under one firm name, “The Jacqueline Shop”; that said conditions and acts of Mrs. Boone caused plaintiff to extend credit which was based on her credit rating and not that of Jones; that Mrs. Boone held Jones out to the public as her partner or agent allowing him to hold himself out to the public as such partner or agent, and that she (Mrs. Boone) is now estopped to deny it as against this plaintiff (appellee). Judgment is asked against Mrs. Boone and J. E. Jones jointly and severally in the sum of $1,989.90 and against J. E. Jones individually-in the sum of $416.70 together with interest at six per cent after thirty days from the date of sale of each item of merchandise.

Mrs. Boone and Jones filed separate answers denying all allegations made in the complaint, and Jones pleaded affirmatively that both amounts sued for, including interest, had been paid by him with a promissory note in the amount of $3,011.21 executed on November 20, 1949, in favor of plaintiff.

Based on the verdict of the jury the court rendered judgment in favor of appellee in the sum of $1,989.90 against Mrs. Pearl Boone and J. E. Jones and against J. E. Jones in the additional sum of $416.70. It will be noted that no interest was allowed in either judgment. From this judgment both sides have appealed.

The record, containing much testimony and many exhibits, is voluminous, but as we view the case^it is not necessary here to detail the testimony extensively. The correctness of the amounts of the judgments is not questioned except that appellee contends the court should have given it judgment for interest. J. E. Jones has not appealed.

Mrs. Boone, appellant, bases her contention for a reversal largely on the theory that admissible evidence under the pleadings was insufficient to establish an actual or ostensible agency, or a partnership. In this we do not agree for it is our opinion that appellee’s complaint, as abstracted above, is sufficient to justify a recovery against Mrs. Boone on the ground that she, by the manner in which she allowed her business to be conducted as disclosed by the evidence, led appellee to believe Jones was clothed with authority to purchase merchandise for ‘ ‘ The Jacqueline Shop” either as her agent or partner.

The law applicable to the pleadings and evidence in this case was announced in Brugman, et al., v. McGuire, et al., 32 Ark. 733 at page 739 where the instruction set out below was given by the lower court and approved by this court:

“First—It was not necessary to entitle the plaintiffs to recover, to prove that the defendants were partners or jointly interested in the mill, but if their acts and conduct were such as to induce the plaintiffs to believe them to be partners or jointly interested, and, under that impression and belief so created, the work was done and the materials furnished, both were liable to the plaintiffs therefor, although Peter Brugman was not, and Philips E. Brugman was alone interested in having the work done and materials furnished, and the same was for his sole use and benefit. ’ ’

On page 740 of the same citation appears this language :

“ ‘It is undoubted law’, says Judge Parsons in his work on partnership, ‘ that one held out as a partner with his own consent is liable as such whether he be a partner in fact or not. ’ Par. on Part., 87, 123; Sto. on Part., § 64; Humphries v. McGraw, 5 Ark. 61; Olmstead v. Hill, 2 Ib., 346.”

We approach our decision in this manner for the same reason that our view expressed above simplifies and clarifies our disposition of the numerous contentions (for a reversal) made by appellant, which we now proceed to discuss in the order set forth in appellant’s brief.

First. The note from J. E. Jones destroyed appellee ’s cause of action on the account against Mrs. Pearl Boone. There is nothing in the record to show that appellee accepted the note with the understanding and agreement that it would extinguish the open account and in the absence of such evidence this case is controlled by the law as stated in Henry v. Conley, 48 Ark. 267, 3 S. W. 181, and -we quote from page 271:

‘ ‘ The taking of the note, bill or check of a debtor, or of one of several joint debtors, or of a stranger for an antecedent indebtedness, is no payment, unless it is agreed to be taken as such. It is only conditional payment, dependent on the payment of the paper. If that is dishonored, the original debt revives.”

Also on page 740 of the Brugman case, supra, the same announcement is made in these words:

“That the debt for which the notes were given was not paid and extinguished by the notes of Peter Brugman unless it was the intention and understanding of the parties at the time the same were given, that they were in payment and discharge of it and so received.”

Second. Error is urged in that a joint and several judgment was rendered against Mrs. Boone and J. E. Jones. It was not error to render judgment against J. E. Jones because he admitted he ow^es the entire amount and has not appealed. Mrs.

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Bluebook (online)
242 S.W.2d 138, 219 Ark. 340, 1951 Ark. LEXIS 518, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/boone-v-general-shoe-corp-ark-1951.