Cooke v. Townley

265 P.2d 1108
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedJanuary 27, 1954
Docket34265
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 265 P.2d 1108 (Cooke v. Townley) 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
Cooke v. Townley, 265 P.2d 1108 (Okla. 1954).

Opinions

PER CURIAM.

The plaintiff in error was the defendant in the trial court and defendant in error' was plaintiff and hereafter they will be referred to as they there appeared.

The plaintiff commenced this replevin action in the district court of Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, wherein he sought to replevy certain described livestock and to recover judgment on two notes, one for $2,400, bearing 6'% interest from the 6th day of June, 1947, and ten percent attorneys’ fees, and one for $3,950, bearing 6% interest from September 12, 1947, and ten percent attorneys’ fees.

A Writ of Replevin describing certain cattle was served on the defendants, Lee McNutt and C. C. Cooke, January 23, 1948, and returned by the sheriff of Oklahoma County, Oklahoma with the notation, “I' also went to- the place where the within described cows are supposed to be kept, where I found approximately 60 head of cows but could not identify them as the cows described in this Writ, and the same cows as described in this Writ were not delivered to the plaintiff herein, (Signed) Dick Strain, Sheriff, by J. W. Brown, Dep-' uty Sheriff.”

C. C. Cooke'filed a separate answer tp plaintiff’s first and second causes of action, alleging payment of said notes and denying that any cattle covered by any mortgages held by the' plaintiff had come into his possession by virtue of any trans-action- with thé defendant Lee McNutt. He alleged that the chattel mortgagé- purportedly given to secure, payment of the note of September 12, 1947, was not filed-for record until January 3, 1948, and that if the court should find and determine that any cattle that came into the possession of C. C. Cooke were -in fact cattle covered, by the mortgage which was filed for record January 3, 1948, that in that event, such cattle wer.e purchased by Cooke in good faith, without notice, and prior to January 3, 1948, when said mortgage was filed for record and that' the title of the defendant Cooke was therefore superior to any right, title -or interest, if: any,'which the plaintiff might have in said cattle.

Defendant asked that the court require an accounting between 'the plaintiff, S. E. Townley, and the defendant, Lee McNutt, and for all other proper relief.

Defendant Cooke also filed a cross.petition against plaintiff S. E. Townley seeking' judgment for. $1,930.65, moneys alleged to be due from Townley to Cooke.

The plaintiff filed a reply and answer in the nature -of a general denial and an amendment to his petition. Upon these issues, trial was had to a jury which returned-a verdict fixing plaintiff’s recovery on his petition at $5,447.95, and a verdict for the defendant Cooke on his cross petition for $1,028.60.

The defendant Cooke’s motion and supplemental motion for a new'trial were overruled' and -the trial' court rendered judgment in accordance with the verdict of the jury from which action of the court the defendant Cooke appeals. No appeal was taken by the defendant Lee McNutt.

The defendant presents his numerous assignments of error under six propositions.

It is first contended that the court erred ’ in refusing to permit the defendant, C. C. Cooke, to amend his answer and cross petition.-

After a jury was empaneled to try the cause, Cooke asked leave to amend his answer and cross petition by alleging that the $2400-and $3950 notes and mortgages securing the same were given by Lee Me- ■ Nutt to S. E. Townley, for the purpose of attempting to hinder, delay and defraud the creditors of McNutt.

, This motion to amend was denied by the court on the grounds that it came too late,. was a surprise to the plaintiff and was no defense to defendant Cooke.

After all the evidence was adduced and the case closed, .defendant Cooke asked leave to amend his answer and cross petition for the same reasons as in the prior motion, together with the further plea that •the $3,950 note alleged to have -been given on September 12, 1947, was in fact given on January 2, 1948. ’This motion was de[1111]*1111nied for- the same, reasons as' the' prior motion. ;, . ■

Defendant admits that to grant or refuse permission to amend pleadings' during the trial' is within the discretion of •the trial court and that such ruling will not be disturbed on appeal except for clear abuse thereof.

The evidence discloses that the note and mortgage were, in fact, made and entered into on September 12, 1947, but that they were not signed until the 2nd day of January, 1948; that the mortgage was filed on the 3rd day of January, 1948, and that the defendant, on the 15th, 16th, or 17th of January, 1948, took possession of the mortgaged cattle and thus had constructive notice of the mortgage-lien, therefore, these facts, if alleged would not constitute a defense for Cooke.

As to the suggested amendment alleging that the notes and mortgages were given by Lee McNutt to S. E. Towriley to delay, hinder and defraud McNutt’s creditors, we fail to see wherein this would affect a statutory lien on the cattle of which defendant Cooke had, at least, constructive notice. ■ No creditors of McNutt were parties to this action and no creditors complained of the notes and mortgages which were the basis of Townley’s cause of action against defendant Cooke.

This proposition is not sustained by the record. It does not affirmatively appear that the exercise of the discretion has operated to the prejudice of any rights of the complaining defendant, or that there was an abuse of the court’s discretion in disallowing the defendant’s suggested amendments.

Defendant’s second proposition is to the effect that the court erred in overruling his demurrer to plaintiff’s evidence and in overruling his request- for an instructed verdict and -that the verdict is not sustained by the evidence.

In this connection, plaintiff asserts that there was- a complete failure of identification of any of the cattle involved in the replevin action covered by the mortgages.

In law actions a demurrer to plaintiff’s evidence or motion for a directed verdict should -not .be sustained unless there is an entire absence of proof tending to show a right to recover. First State Bank of Addington v. Lattimer, 48 Okl. 104, 149 P. 1099, and in passing upon a demurrer to the evidence or a motion for a directed verdict the trial court must consider- as true all of the evidence favorable to the party against .whom the demurrer or motion is directed together with all inferences that may be reasonably" drawn therefrom and disregard all conflicting evidence favorable to the demurrant or movant. Fleming v. Hodgson, 199 Okl. 261, 185 P.2d 181.

There was ample evidence to sustain the trial court’s action in overruling the defendant’s demurrer and motion for a directed verdict.

The contention that the verdict is not sustained by the evidence is untenable.

In a law action tried to a jury, the jury’s verdict and trial court’s judgment based thereon will not be disturbed because of insufficiency of evidence if there is any evidence reasonably tending to support it.

' The principal complaint' of defendant is as to-'the evidence establishing’the idenity of the mortgaged cattle. This question was submitted to the jury under proper instruction, without exception.

• The defendant’s argument under this proposition attacks the credibility of the witnesses, Lee McNutt,-mortgager, and S. E. Townley, mortgagee-plaintiff.

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Bluebook (online)
265 P.2d 1108, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cooke-v-townley-okla-1954.