Brown v. Davis Bros. Lumber Co.

62 So. 670, 133 La. 262, 1913 La. LEXIS 2034
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedFebruary 3, 1913
DocketNo. 19,575
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 62 So. 670 (Brown v. Davis Bros. Lumber Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brown v. Davis Bros. Lumber Co., 62 So. 670, 133 La. 262, 1913 La. LEXIS 2034 (La. 1913).

Opinion

Motion for Rescission of Writ.

BREAUX, C. J.

[1] Respondent, D. E. Brown, Jr., in his motion alleged that it did not appear from the records that an application for a rehearing had been made from the judgment rendered by the Court of Appeal. It appears that the opinion of the Court of Appeal was handed down on the 29th day of June, 1911. The minutes of the court proceedings show that on the 29th day of June, 1912, an application for a rehearing was refused. There was an unusual delay between the date the original decision was rendered and the date the application for a rehearing was overruled. This delay was a very much larger number of days than 15. The delay between the date of judgment and the date the rehearing was refused does not give rise to an issue which can be considered before this court on this application; and, no reason having been assigned by respondent and no complaint made in the circuit court of any delay on the part of the relator in applying for a rehearing, we do not find it possible to decide that the application for a rehearing was not timely made in the Circuit Court of Appeals. That part of the motion relating to delay is overruled.

[2] The next ground of the motion to have the writ recalled is that no requisite notice had been given of the intention to apply for a writ of certiorari. Respondent urges that the affidavit must show specifically that the applicant gave notice of the intention to make the application; that an affidavit that all requisite notice has been given is not sufficient.

Relator swore that he had given notice as required by law of its intention to apply to the court for certiorari. We will not hold the notice insufficient upon a mere averment that it is not sufficient. The notice may have contained all of the essentials which respondent says were not given. It devolved upon respondent to produce the notice. The court denies the application to have the writ nisi recalled and rescinded.

On the Merits.

[3] Relator acquired the land he claims to own (and which is described in the petition) from E. H. Crawley.

D. E. Brown, Jr., obtained two judgments against E. H. Crawley; the first for $267.47, dated January' 17, 1908; the second for $989.30, dated January 31, 1909. On the day that the first judgment was registered, Crawley owned 200 acres of land, which became [265]*265subject to a mortgage under the first judgment (for the second judgment had not yet been rendered). On August 11, 1908, before the rendition of the second judgment, Crawley sold 80 acres of the land, with the judicial mortgage under the first judgment existing against the property. Brown had the second judgment executed and caused the remaining 120 acres to be sold at sheriff’s sale for $400 and became the owner of it. This amount was not sufficient to pay the indebtedness to Brown. On the 5th day of July, 1910, Brown proceeded in court to compel Davis Bros. Company to pay this judgment rendered on the 17th day of January, 1908, or surrender the 80 acres to be seized and sold to pay the judgment. In the litigation which ensued, the petition of plaintiff was put at issue by defendant’s answer. After hearing, Brown’s demand was rejected. The latter perfected an appeal to the Circuit Court of Appeals. The Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the judgment of the district court and rendered judgment in favor of Brown, the plaintiff, condemning the Davis Bros. Company to pay the judgment or surrender the land to be seized and sold in satisfaction of the amount claimed by plaintiff.

As relates to the junior mortgage, the ground of relator’s complaint is that Brown had no right, as he proposed to do, to impute the proceeds of the -sale to the junior mortgage and this without notice. That he should -have proceeded against the property alienated in the order of dates at which it was sold. That the land and the price were in possession of Brown.- That there is no possible question of discussion of the proceeds of the sale, and that the circuit court erred in holding that, in the event petitioner was compelled to pay the mortgage indebtedness before mentioned in order to hold its property, it (relator) would not become subrogated to the judgment including its accessory of the mortgage; its obligation was to pay and its right of subrogation plaintiff proposes to deny to the defendant (respondent).

The land is described as the N. of N. W. Yi, section 35, township 17.

Brown, Jr., obtained a judgment for the sum of $264.47 and costs, which judgment was inscribed in the mortgage records on the 21st day of January, 1909. This was subsequent to the purchase of plaintiff. He also obtained another judgment in the district court in the sum of $984.39. Different from the first judgment above mentioned, this last did not operate as a judicial mortgage against relator’s land, as he became the owner of the 80 acres of land prior to the registry of the judgment of Brown v. Crawley.

To restate the proposition in other words: • Plaintiff obtained a judgment, which with interest amounted to $320.84 balance due thereon. He wishes to collect that remaining unpaid' balance exclusively from the proceeds of the sale of the 80 acres, amount which he wishes, as before stated, defendant or relator here to pay or abandon the land or deliver it to be sold as before mentioned.

One of the propositions on the part of plaintiff is that he has exhausted the property of his judgment debtor and that now he has the right to seize and have sold the property of defendant under his • judicial mortgage. The difficulty he encounters here from a legal point of view is that, even if he has exhausted the property of his debtor, he cannot impute an amount exclusively to the payment of a second mortgage to the detriment of a first mortgage. This under the law cannot be done. But, in order to sustain his position, plaintiff refers to an article of the Code of Practice in which it is provided that the third possessor is obliged to pay or surrender the property. Article 713.

[267]*267The predicate of the cited article is:

“One who has a legal or judicial mortgage may compel the payment of surrender o'f the property mortgage.”

But here, the claim in law being satisfied by the sale of the 120 acres before mentioned, plaintiff neither has a legal nor a judicial mortgage, and therefore his case does not come within the terms of the article cited.

There is no basis in this case for the plea of discussion. The Davis Bros. Lumber Company cannot be made to pay an amount, as plaintiff, Brown, cannot withhold the whole price of part of the property mortgaged and compel the mortgage debtor to pay the whole indebtedness, although by thus paying it ignores the fact that defendant company’s property is subject to a first mortgage and not to a second mortgage. It is irreconcilable with the right of the third possessor.

For reasons stated, it is ordered, adjudged, and decreed that the judgment of the Circuit Court of Appeals is annulled, avoided, and reversed at appellant Brown’s costs in that court. It is further ordered, adjudged, and decreed that the judgment of the district court is affirmed, and the case is remanded to that court in order that the judgment may be executed to the extent that it is executory for costs. Respondent to pay the costs of this court.

On Rehearing — Motion to Recall.

LAND, J.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
62 So. 670, 133 La. 262, 1913 La. LEXIS 2034, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brown-v-davis-bros-lumber-co-la-1913.