Collamore v. Cliftondale Woodworking Co.

2 Mass. App. Div. 288
CourtMassachusetts District Court, Appellate Division
DecidedApril 20, 1937
StatusPublished

This text of 2 Mass. App. Div. 288 (Collamore v. Cliftondale Woodworking Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts District Court, Appellate Division primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Collamore v. Cliftondale Woodworking Co., 2 Mass. App. Div. 288 (Mass. Ct. App. 1937).

Opinion

Wilson, J.

This is an action of contract brought to recover unpaid salary balances for the years 1926 to 1933, inclusive.

The declaration as finally amended contained eight counts. Count 8 was a count upon an account annexed, which account was for unpaid balances of salaries for said years.

The amended answer was a general denial, payment, waiver, agreement that payment was to be made when deemed expedient by the board of directors, failure of performance by the plaintiff, and the statute of limitations as to items 1 and 2 of count 8.

The trial judge found for the plaintiff on count 8 in the sum of $2284.35, with interest from May 30, 1934, to December 11, 1934.

The trial judge filed a detailed written decision from which it appears that the plaintiff was formerly, during the years 1926 to 1933, inclusive, treasurer and director of the defendant corporation. Prior to the organization of the defendant corporation in April of 1926, the plaintiff and one Agersea had been partners. That during the period covered by this action the defendant and Agersea each held seven hundred and fifty shares of stock in the defendant corporation, and one Davis held one share and was clerk and attorney of the corporation. The records were kept and prepared by Davis and on the whole were prepared with thoroughness and skill. Agersea and Collamore treat[290]*290ed their relationship as one of partners and considered the corporation as a two-man corporation. For several years the salaries of Agersea, president, and Collamore, treasurer, were formally voted by the corporation. These votes provided for an annual salary and also provided for a weekly drawing account. The drawing account for the fifty-two weeks was always less than the amount voted for annual salary and the votes, which established salary for the years 1926 to 1930, inclusive, provided that the balance should “be paid from time to time as the board of directors shall deem expedient.” At the end of each year up to and including 1932, Agersea and Collamore met with their auditor, talked over the matter of salaries in the light of the yearly statement for the previous year, and finally determined the salary for the year independent of the formal vote of the directors during the year. The auditor of the corporation set up the salary for each prior year on the authorization of said officers, rather than the record books of the corporation.

The legal effect of this procedure as to salaries is that the directors voted a provisional salary to the officers and they accepted the same as such. When the latter met informally and authorized the auditor to set up a different amount, their action finally established their real salaries for the year.

The votes established a provisional salary. The exact amount of salary was established by the informal oral agreement and was dependent upon the financial condition of the corporation and its business for the year, and was independent of the amount voted.

The weekly drawing account voted was always safely within the provisional salary, ‘ ‘ the balance to be paid from time to time as the board of directors shall deem expedient.” The amount of this balance was established when the salary was finally determined and the balance, if any, was credited to the officers’ accrued salaries account.

[291]*291While the corporation had the right to exercise sound discretion as to the time and manner of payment of these accruals, it cannot merely on grounds of expediency relieve itself from any ultimate obligation to pay.

To the “Accrued Officers Salaries Account” was carried each year the difference between what each received and the amount they orally agreed should constitute their salaries. For the years 1928 and 1930 said officers authorized the cancellation of a portion of said account as it then stood on the books of the corporation.

After a conference, relative to the condition of the corporation, held in April 1933, the directors, in May 1933, at a meeting, voted:

1. To rescind all prior votes on the matter of salaries for the officers.
2. That all claims of accrued officers salaries be stricken from the records.

All the directors, including Agersea and the plaintiff, voted in favor of said resolutions.

If the votes were accepted by the officers they would amount to a cancellation of said officers’ claims to their accrued salaries. The acceptance of each officer, however, would be conditional upon the good faith of the other. As a matter of fact the item, Accrued Officers Salaries, was never stricken from the books or reports of the corporation, but has been carried from year to year to date.

The plaintiff severed his connection with the corporation on December 30, 1933, and transferred his stock to the corporation, although his contract for the sale thereof was with Agersea. Some of said stock was then sold to a new stockholder and the balance kept by Agersea.

The accrued salary account of Collamore still remained on the books and to the account of Agersea amounts had been added each year since December 30, 1933.

[292]*292The trial court interpreted the second vote, “if not rendered ineffective otherwise, to be one purporting to cancel the amounts of accruals as they then appeared on the books of the corporation,” and made the following finding:

“On all the evidence I find that while Agersea, as a director, voted in favor of the motion made at said meeting of May 1933, he, as an officer, never intended to sacrifice his claim for accrued officers ’ salaries, and when he gained control of the corporation he ordered his yearly accruals to be continued. Inasmuch as Collamore’s implied acceptance of said votes was conditioned upon the acceptance by Agersea, and inasmuch as Agersea in the capacity of officer never did accept said votes, I find that said votes were not in fact accepted by Collamore. They have no effect on his claim for accruals.”

Collamore spent little time during November 1933, and in December he rendered no services to the defendant but engaged in setting up a woodworking business of his own. For the year 1933 the salary voted to each was $2700.00. Agersea received this amount in cash and accruals. Collamore did not abandon the corporation but transferred his holding by mutual agreement between Agersea and himself satisfactory to both.

The court found the plaintiff was entitled to 11/12 of $2700.00 or $2475.00 as salary for 1933 and that he actually received $1539.50, leaving a balance due him for that year of $935.50. That for the year 1927 Agersea received $6544.52 and Collamore $6163.61. Collamore should have been credited with $380.91 for the year and found “the failure to include this amount was a mistake.” The accruals were kept in a running account and the trial court ruled this claim was not barred by the statute of limitations.

The court found the plaintiff was entitled to recover the following amounts: $967.94, which is the amount credited [293]*293to Ms account on the hooks as accruals up to and including December 31, 1932; $380.91, balance for the year 1927, wMch should have been included and carried along in said accruals; $935.50 for the year 1933; making a total of $2284.35, upon which interest is allowed from the date of demand, May 30, 1934, to the date of the writ.

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Bluebook (online)
2 Mass. App. Div. 288, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/collamore-v-cliftondale-woodworking-co-massdistctapp-1937.