Doering v. Schneider

128 N.E. 936, 74 Ind. App. 294, 1920 Ind. App. LEXIS 236
Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided December 7, 1920·No. No. 10,501·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

Batman, J.

This is an action in replevin, brought by appellant against appellee, to recover the possession of certain personal property, including an automobile, on which the former claimed to hold a chattel mortgage to secure a debt due him from the latter. The answer is in two paragraphs, consisting of a general denial, and an affirmative paragraph in which it is alleged that all of the indebtedness secured by said mortgage had been paid except the sum of $23.42, which had been duly tendered to appellant and refused by him. It is further alleged therein that said sum was brought into court for appellant’s benefit for the purpose of making said tender good. A reply in general denial was filed to said second paragraph of answer. A trial by a jury resulted in a verdict in favor of appellee, upon which judgment was duly Tendered. Appellant filed a motion for a new trial,-which was overruled. This action of the court is the sole error assigned on appeal.

1. [296]*2962. [295] The only reasons for a new trial stated in appellant’s motion therefor are that the verdict is not sustained by sufficient evidence, and is contrary to law. Appellant admits that the evidence on the question of the amount due on the indebtedness secured by the mortgage is conflicting, and by reason of such fact expressly limits his brief to a consideration of the question relating to the alleged tender of the balance, which appellee concedes to be owing on said indebtedness. In this connection appellant has stated a number of abstract propositions of law as to what is necessary [296] to constitute a tender and a waiver thereof, none of which we controvert. There is nothing in any of these propositions which prevents our holding that the verdict of the jury is sustained by the evidence. The evidence .tends to show that appellee and Otto Legner went to appellant’s place of business for the purpose of tendering him the sum of $28.71 in payment of the balance due on said indebtedness; that they found appellant sitting at his writing desk; that while there appellee had present, in the possession of said Legner, money sufficient to pay said balance; that said Legner, on behalf of appellee, offered appellant the sum of $23.71 in payment of the balance due on said indebtedness; that appellant, without making any objections to the kind of money offered, refused to accept it because of the insufficiency of the amount, and declared that he would not surrender the note on payment of said sum. These facts, together with the reasonable inferences deducible therefrom, would sustain a finding that a tender was made, and it would likewise sustain a finding that a tender was waived. But appellant asserts that, inasmuch as appellee’s affirmative paragraph of answer only alleges .a tender, it cannot be sustained by proof of a waiver of tender, and therefpre, if the evidence does not establish an actual tender, the answer is not sustained. In support of this contention he cites a number of decisions to the effect that a party must recover secundum allegata et probata or not at all. This rule, however, is not available to appellant under the circumstances of this case, as the briefs do not disclose that he made objections to any evidence bearing on the question of such waiver, or that he claims to have been in any wise misled or prejudiced thereby. Under these circumstances, this court, if necessary, will deem appellee’s second paragraph of answer amended to conform to the evidence. Southern Ind. R. Co. v. Drennen [297] (1909), 44 Ind. App. 14, 88 N. E. 724; Hawkins v. Thompson (1919), 69 Ind. App. 605, 122 N. E. 431.

3. Appellant contends that, even if the court holds that the evidence shows a tender, still appellee was not entitled to recover, as there was no proof that appellee kept his tender good. In support of this contention, he asserts that the evidence shows that, at times subsequent to the maturity of the note evidencing said indebtedness and subsequent to the alleged tender, he made demand for the payment of the balance of said indebtedness, or the possession of the chattel security therefor, and that there is no evidence to show that any tender was made upon any of such occasions. We cannot sustain appellant’s contention that appellee failed to keep his tender good. The evidence tends to show that the face of the note evidencing the indebtedness in question was $750; that appellee claimed that the balance due thereon was only $23.71, whilé appellant insisted that the balance due thereon was over $250; that it was because of 'this difference as to the amount due thereon that appellant refused to accept the amount which appellee offered to pay. The object of h tender is to enable the other party to accept, and thus escape further liability at any stage of the proceedings. Where a tender has once been made and refused, it is not necessary, as a rule, to renew such tender, and especially is this true where there is no indication that such refusal has been withdrawn and that a tender would be accepted. Cleveland, etc., R. Co. v. Anderson Tool Co. (1913), 180 Ind. 453, 103 N. E. 102, 49 L. R. A. (N. S.) 749, Ann. Cas. 1916B 1217. In the instant case there is evidence from which the jury may have found that appellant not only refused the tender made by appellee, but that his course thereafter was such as to clearly indicate that he would not accept the same. Under these circumstances, a pay[298] ment of the money into court was all that was required after such refusal.

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Doering v. Schneider, 128 N.E. 936, 74 Ind. App. 294, 1920 Ind. App. LEXIS 236 (Ind. Ct. App. 1920).

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