Davidson Sash & Door Co. v. Contract Carpet & Supply, Inc.

263 So. 2d 123, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6309
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 29, 1972
DocketNo. 8856
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 263 So. 2d 123 (Davidson Sash & Door Co. v. Contract Carpet & Supply, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Davidson Sash & Door Co. v. Contract Carpet & Supply, Inc., 263 So. 2d 123, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6309 (La. Ct. App. 1972).

Opinion

BLANCHE, Judge.

Plaintiff, Davidson Sash and Door Company, Inc., initially filed suit on open account against defendant, Contract Carpet and Supply, Inc. By supplemental and amending petition filed prior to answer, plaintiff joined as defendants Homer Lee d/b,/a Contract Carpet Company, to whom plaintiff averred it sold the merchandise on open account. In this same pleading plaintiff contended that Contract Carpet and Supply, Inc., was the transferee in bulk of the assets and property of Homer Lee d/b/a Contract Carpet Company, which transfer was not made in compliance with the Louisiana Bulk Sales Law, LSA-R.S. 9:2961, et seq., thereby rendering both defendants liable in solido to plaintiff.

Contract Carpet and Supply, Inc., filed answer in the form of a general denial, and further alleged the inapplicability of the [124]*124Louisiana Bulk Sales Act. Defendant, Homer Lee (who is shown by the record really to be “Homer Lee, Jr.”), also filed answer in the form of a general denial, and further filed a third party petition against G. J. Guirard, contending that third party plaintiff and third party defendant were partners in an enterprise known as “Contract Carpet,” with the result that third party plaintiff was entitled to claim any rights flowing from any remission of the debt between the plaintiff and third party defendant, and alternatively was entitled to recover from third party defendant his virile share of the obligation. Third party defendant, Gerald J. Guirard, filed answer to the third party demand, averring that on February 1, 1970, Homer Lee [Homer Lee, Jr.] purchased all of third party defendant’s interest in the business known as Contract Carpet Sales,” and expressly agreed to “hold Guirard . . . free and harmless from any or all liability whatsoever to any of the creditors, customers or employees of Contract Carpet Sales.”

The trial court rendered judgment in favor of defendants dismissing plaintiff’s suit and also dismissing the third party demand. The trial court reasoned that a letter dated April 8, 1970, addressed to Mr. G. J. Guirard and sent by plaintiff amounted to a remission of the debt insofar as G. J. Guirard was concerned, and inasmuch as G. J. Guirard was liable in solido with Homer Lee [Homer Lee, Jr.] as partners in the commercial partnership, the remission operated to release and discharge Homer Lee [Homer Lee, Jr.] as well, under the provisions of LSA-C.C. Art. 2203, there being no express reservation of rights by plaintiff against Homer Lee [Homer Lee, Jr.]. The trial court dismissed the suit against Contract Carpet and Supply, Inc., on the basis that plaintiff abandoned its claim against said defendant as the alleged bulk transferee. From this judgment plaintiff has appealed.

The record shows that on February 1, 1970, Gerald J. Guirard and Homer Lee, Jr., signed a notarized instrument entitled “Transfer of Interest in Company” which reads as follows:

“For and in consideration of the sale and transfer to Homer Lee, Jr. by Gerald J. Guirard of all of said Guirárd’s interest in and to that business known as ‘Contract Carpet Sales’, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which transfer is made herewith and receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, said Lee hereby agrees to hold Guirard and Mid South Door Company, Inc. free and harmless from any or all liability whatsoever to any of the creditors, customers or employees of Contract' Carpet Sales.” (Guirard Exhibit No. 1)

The record further shows that Gerald J. Guirard is the owner of Mid-South Door Company, Inc., which was one of the principal Baton Rouge customers of plaintiff. Plaintiff’s salesman and manager of plaintiff’s Baton Rouge branch were aware of the fact that Gerald J. Guirard and Homer Lee, Jr., had terminated their business relationship and that Homer Lee, Jr., became the sole proprietor of Contract Carpet Sales, having assumed all of the obligations of the former partnership and having agreed to hold Gerald J. Guirard harmless therefor. Plaintiff had been doing business with Contract Carpet Sales for many months prior to February 1, 1970, on an open account basis, and plaintiff continued to deal with Contract Carpet Sales, that is, Homer Lee, Jr., following February 1, 1970, on an open account basis, until the latter’s credit deteriorated to the point where further business transactions were conducted on a C.O.D. basis.

The record contains a letter appearing on the stationery of Mid-South Door Company, Inc., dated March 6, 1970, addressed to plaintiff and signed by Gerald J. Guirard and by Mid-South Door Company, Inc., Gerald J. Guirard, President, the body of which letter reads as follows:

“This is to inform you that Gerald J. Guirard and/or Mid-South Door Company, Inc. are no longer associated with Contract Carpet Company and neither Gerald J. Guirard or [sic] Mid-South [125]*125Door Company, Inc. are [sic] responsible for any previously incurred or future obligations of Contract Carpet Company.” (Lee Exhibit No. 1)

Gerald J. Guirard testified that notwithstanding the fact that plaintiff had been advised previously of the termination of the business relationship between Gerald J. Guirard and Homer Lee, Jr., Gerald J. Guirard, in order to protect his credit, desired to confirm that situation in writing to the principal obligees of the former partnership; hence, the reason ’ for his writing the aforementioned letter.

It was either in response to this letter or a telephone conversation or both that Bill Wilkinson, manager of plaintiff’s Baton Rouge branch, wrote the following letter addressed to G. J. Guirard, which letter bears the date “April 8, 1970” 1:

“This is to confirm our conversation of Monday, April 6th, that Mid South Door Comapny or G. J. Guirard is not obligated for the balance due Davidson Sash & Door Company, Inc. by Contract Carpet nor will Mid South Door Company or G. J. Guirard be responsible for purchases by Contract Carpet.
“This confirmation will become valid when I receive a letter from you stating that you no longer have any interest in Contract Carpet.” (Lee Exhibit No. 2)

The letter further shows thereon a carbon copy being sent as follows:

“cc Homer Lee
Contract Carpet
9454 South Choctaw Drive
Baton Rouge, Louisiana”
(Lee Exhibit No. 2)

The effect of the trial judge’s ruling is that notwithstanding the fact that Homer Lee, Jr., admittedly purchased or at least acquired all interest of Gerald J. Guirard in the business known as “Contract Carpet Sales” and agreed to hold Guirard free and harmless from any or all liability whatsoever to any of the creditors, customers or employees of Contract Carpet Sales, which agreement was formally consummated on February 1, 1970, nevertheless, plaintiff, which was fully aware of the fact that Homer Lee, Jr., was responsible for all obligations of Contract Carpet Sales, lost all rights to collect the money owed it on the account by virtue of plaintiff’s April 8, 1970, letter. We cannot subscribe to this obviously inequitable result, considering the particular facts of this case.

In construing plaintiff’s April 8, 1970, letter, consideration must be given to the actual intent of plaintiff in writing this letter to see whether plaintiff, indeed, intended any remission of the debt.

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Bluebook (online)
263 So. 2d 123, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6309, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/davidson-sash-door-co-v-contract-carpet-supply-inc-lactapp-1972.