Crown Coach Co., Inc. v. Palmer

102 S.W.2d 853, 193 Ark. 739, 1937 Ark. LEXIS 74
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedMarch 8, 1937
Docket4-4548
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 102 S.W.2d 853 (Crown Coach Co., Inc. v. Palmer) 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
Crown Coach Co., Inc. v. Palmer, 102 S.W.2d 853, 193 Ark. 739, 1937 Ark. LEXIS 74 (Ark. 1937).

Opinions

Humphreys, J.

Appellant, Crown Coach Company, Inc., is a corporation domiciled in Missouri and engaged in operating passenger busses in several adjoining states.

Appellant, Tim Ackley, resides in Port Smith;.Arkansas, and was the driver of one of its passenger busses on July 22, when it ran into the ear in which Mrs. Willis Palmer was riding.

Appellees, husband and wife, are residents of the state of Texas.

Appellees brought separate suits in the circuit court of Crawford county against appellants for carelessly and negligently driving the motor-bus owned by Crown Coach Company, Inc. into the back end of an automobile in which Mrs. Willis Palmer was riding with such force as to throw her in and about said automobile so as to seriously and permanently injure her.

Mrs. Palmer sued them for damages in the sum of $50,000 for personal injuries, loss of' time and expenses for medical treatment.

Mr. Palmer sued them for damages in the sum of $10,000 for the loss of services of his wife and medical and surgical expenses incurred by him on account of the injury she received.

Appellants filed a motion and bond in proper form in each case for the removal of the causes to the United States court for the Western District of Arkansas on account of the diversity of citizenship of the parties, the amount involved, exclusive of interest and cost, being more than the sum of $3,000.

The trial court overruled the motions to transfer the causes to the federal court and appellants saved exceptions to the ruling.

In apt time separate answers were filed to the complaints denying the material allegations therein and pleading contributory negligence on the part of Mrs. Palmer as an additional defense to the suits.

The causes were consolidated for the purposes of trial and submitted to a jury upon the evidence adduced and instructions of the court resulting in verdicts and judgments against appellants in favor of Mrs. Palmer for $14,500 and in favor of Mr. Palmer for $500, from which verdicts and judgments is this appeal.

According to the complaints, appellees sued appellants as joint tort-feasors. The liability alleged is a joint tort liability. The construction of the Congressional Acts providing for transfers to the federal court of causes of action is that a suit brought by a nonresident against a resident cannot be removed to the federal court on motion of the resident defendant. Martin v. Snider, 148 U. S. 663, 13 S. Ct. 706, 37 L. Ed. 602. It follows, of course, from that holding if a suit be brought by a nonresident against a resident and a nonresident on a joint liability, not separable, the defendants cannot transfer the cause from the state to the federal courts. The courts seem unanimous in this holding except in the case of Stanbrough v. Cook, 38 Fed. 369, cited by learned counsel for appellants in support of their motions in the instant cases. The court in that case bottomed its opinion upon the fact that the cause of action against the defendants was separable and took occasion to say in the opinion that: “It is also well settled that if a plaintiff has a cause of action in tort or upon contract against several defendants, which is joint, or, being joint and several, is declared on jointly by the plaintiff, the defendants cannot, by tendering separate issues in their answers, create separable controversies, so as to authorize a removal of the cause. Louisville & Nashville Railroad Co. v. Ide, 144 U. S. 52, 5 Sup. Ct. 735, 29 L. Ed. 63; Pirie v. Tvedt, 115 U. S. 41, 5 Sup. Ct. 1034, 29 L. Ed. 331; Sloan v. Anderson, 117 U. S. 275, 6 S. Ct. 730, 29 L. Ed. 899; Fidelity Insurance Co. v. Huntington, 117 U. S. 280, 6 Sup. Ct. 733, 29 L. Ed. 898; Brooks v. Clark, 119 U. S. 502, 7 Sup. Ct. 301, 30 L. Ed. 482.

The court did not err in overruling appellants’ motions to transfer the causes to the federal court as the causes of action were based on a joint tort liability, not separable.

A reversal of the judgments is also sought upon the ground that the court erred in giving instruction No. 2 at the request of appellees, which is as follows:

“You are instructed that § 12 of act No. 223 of the Acts of the General Assembly of the state of Arkansas for the year 1927 provides as follows: “The driver of any vehicle overtaking another vehicle proceeding in the same direction shall pass at a safe distance to the left, thereof and shall not again drive to the right side of the highway until safely clear of such overtaken vehicle.
“And you are further instructed that the same section of this act pro Addes that: ‘The driver of any overtaking motor vehicle not within a business or residence district, as herein defined, shall give audible warning Avitli his horn or other warning.device before passing or attempting to pass a vehicle proceeding in the same direction.’ It is argued that the instruction is abstract because there was no issue on the question of the bus trying, Avithout giving a signal or a warning, to pass the automobile in Avhich Mrs. Palmer was riding, and no evidence in the record tending to support such an issue. That Avas the main issue involved in the case. It Avas alleged in the complaints: ‘That said defendant, Tim Ackley, so acting as aforesaid, carelessly and negligently undertook to pass and go around the automobile in which plaintiff Avas riding AAdthout any signal or Avarning whatever, and carelessly and negligently so turned and operated said bus as to cause same to run into and strike the said automobile in AA'hich plaintiff was riding Avithout giA’ing any signal or Avarning whatever.’ ”

This allegation Avas supported by the testimony of a number of the Avitnesses. By Avay of illustration the folloAving excerpt is taken from the testimony of D. O. Edwards:

“Coming doAvn the mountain the car was in front of us and there was another car coming up the bill pretty fast. The driver started around the car in front and saw he couldn’t make it. He darted back in and hit this car.”

On cross-examination, this witness testified:

‘ ‘ Q. The bus turned out for the purpose of passing the car in front? A. It started to. Q. Are you sure that is what he started to do? A. That is what he aimed to do. Q. At the time he turned out this automobile was 200 yards away? A. Yes, sir. ■ Q. He turned out and then whipped back in? A. Yes, sir.”

Practically all the testimony was to the effect that Ackley gave no warning by-blowing the horn or otherwise of his approach and attempt to pass around the car in which Mrs. Palmer was riding.

The instruction was responsive to the issue joined and the evidence introduced in support thereof.

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Bluebook (online)
102 S.W.2d 853, 193 Ark. 739, 1937 Ark. LEXIS 74, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/crown-coach-co-inc-v-palmer-ark-1937.