City-Central Bank & Trust Co. v. Corder

91 S.W.2d 1126
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 27, 1936
DocketNo. 3326.
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 91 S.W.2d 1126 (City-Central Bank & Trust Co. v. Corder) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
City-Central Bank & Trust Co. v. Corder, 91 S.W.2d 1126 (Tex. Ct. App. 1936).

Opinion

WALTHALL, Justice.

This suit was brought December 1, 1930, by plaintiffs Lillian Price Corder, joined by her husband, Eugene Corder, against defendants, City-Central Bank & Trust Company of San Antonio, and A. J. Lewis, substitute trustee, to enjoin the sale of certain lands in Uvalde county, Tex., under a deed of trust securing an indebtedness which plaintiffs claim was an indebtedness of the husband only and to cancel and hold said deed of trust for naught and to remove the same as a cloud upon the title of said. lands. It is alleged that the lands were the separate property of the wife, inherited from her deceased parents; that the deed of trust was executed by the wife joined by the husband, on September 25, 1922, to secure the payment of an indebtedness to the City National Bank of San Antonio, evidenced by a note executed by plaintiffs in the principal sum of $15,-925.94; that about September 14, 1926, plaintiffs executed a note for $55,060.40, in renewal of the indebtedness of the husband to said bank, and on September 29, ■ 1926, plaintiffs,, to secure said indebtedness, executed a renewal and extension of the deed of trust lien on said lands; that at the time the two deeds of trust were executed the defendant bank held other and additional securities for the husband’s indebtedness; that such indebtedness, less certain credits, and the liens and securities mentioned, were acquired by defendant bank from the City National Bank of San Antonio, as the successor to the City National Bank of San Antonio.

It is alleged that the liens of the said two. deeds of trust had been extinguished and lost to defendant bank, (a) because the defendant bank and the City National Bank, through a course of dealing with plaintiff -husband, beginning when the original deed of trust was executed and continuing to about June 1, 1930, and without the knowledge or consent of the wife, had *1127 released, altered, and permitted substitutions for collateral and securities held by the defendant bank for the indebtedness of plaintiff husband; and (b) because the said indebtedness of the plaintiff husband had been extinguished by payments made from time to time, manifest on the defendant bank records.

We might state here that the deeds of trust each provide substantially that it was to secure the notes described with renewals and extensions; also for the purpose of securing any and all demands, notes, overdrafts, acceptances, or obligations of any kind of plaintiffs, to the City National Bank, now owing or thereafter contracted by either of plaintiffs.

It was alleged that said lands were about to be sold by substitute trustee defendant Lewis under the deed of trust, and if sold an irreparable damage would result.

Plaintiffs ask for injunction'restraining the sale, for judgment canceling the deed of trust liens, for an adjudication that the plaintiffs were not indebted to the defendant bank for costs, and general relief.

Subsequent to the filing of the suit, the defendant bank closed its doors and voluntarily placed itself in the hands ,of the Banking Commissioner for liquidation. Defendants answered on March 2, 1932, by plea in abatement to the effect that defendant bank was in the hands of the Banking Commissioner for liquidation, and the suit be abated and the Banking Commissioner be made a party. Subject to the plea the defendant bank answered to the merits of the suit. By cross-action defendant bank declared upon two notes each signed by plaintiffs, one dated January IS, 1930, for the principal amount of $11,646.19, due April IS, 1930, and the other dated January 31, 1930, for the principal amount of $625.-50, due March 3, 1930, and represented that the notes represented renewals and extensions of indebtedness secured by said deed of trust. Defendant asked for judgment on the two notes, and foreclosure of the deed of trust. No action was taken on the plea in abatement at any time.

Then follow other pleadings. On March 4, 1932, plaintiffs, by supplement, filed answer to the defendants' cross-action.

Subsequent to the filing of defendants’ answer and cross-action the Federal Land Bank of Houston foreclosed a prior lien on 3,311 acres, more or less, of the lands here involved, and left remaining of said lands 1,793½ acres.

On March 2, 1934, the defendant bank filed its third amended original answer and cross-action on which it went to trial, consisting of demurrers, general and special, general denial, special denial that it altered or substituted securities or collateral as alleged by plaintiffs, and alleged that as to such transactions not had with plaintiff wife, the plaintiff husband was acting as ,her authorized agent and with her knowledge and consent and for her benefit. Defendants’ cross-action declared upon the identical notes described in plaintiffs’ pleadings and the deed of trust securing their payment. The defendants’ answer and cross-action alleged that the indebtedness declared upon and the deed of trust lien had been assigned to the South Texas Bank & Trust Company on or about August 10, 1932, by the Banking Commissioner, receiver of the defendant bank, in liquidation.

On February 18, 1935, plaintiffs filed their plea in abatement and motion to strike out defendants’ cross-action for want of interest in the subject-matter pleaded.

The court sustained the plea in abatement and denied defendant leave to amend and dismissed the cross-action. At the same time the court granted the South Texas Bank & Trust Company leave to intervene and be substituted in the suit for the defendant bank, but denied intervener the right to be substituted for the defendant bank as to its cross-action.

The intervener bank alleged that, for a valuable consideration, the Banking Commissioner, as receiver of the defendant bank, had assigned to it the cause of action and the notes, liens, and other instruments executed by plantiffs in favor of the City ⅜ National Bank and the defendant bank, and that intervener was the real party at interest, and that it adopted the allegations and pleadings filed by the defendant bank and the pleadings filed originally by intervener in its own behalf.

The court sustained plaintiffs’ supplemental petition in which plaintiffs moved the court to strike the petition of intervention in so far as.it sought to adopt defendant’s cross-action. By trial amendment plaintiffs pleaded the statute of limitations of four years as a bar to the notes and liens in question.

The case was tried to the court without a jury and resulted in a judgment for plaintiffs canceling and holding for naught the deeds of trust in so far as such liens affected the lands against which the fore-" *1128 closure was sought, and removing said liens as a cloud upon the title; it was further adjudged that neither of plaintiffs was indebted to the defendant bank and the judgment canceled the indebtedness asserted by the defendant bank and intervener; the judgment denied the defendant bank and intervener any affirmative relief against plaintiffs on their cross-action, and with respect thereto provided that plaintiffs go, hence without day and- with their costs; the temporary injunction theretofore granted was made permanent. Defendant bank and intervener prosecute separate appeals.

Opinion.

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91 S.W.2d 1126, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-central-bank-trust-co-v-corder-texapp-1936.