Eddons Drug Company v. Wright

248 So. 2d 140, 46 Ala. App. 645, 1971 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 416
CourtCourt of Civil Appeals of Alabama
DecidedMay 12, 1971
Docket7 Div. 25
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 248 So. 2d 140 (Eddons Drug Company v. Wright) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Eddons Drug Company v. Wright, 248 So. 2d 140, 46 Ala. App. 645, 1971 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 416 (Ala. Ct. App. 1971).

Opinion

BRADLEY, Judge.

Review is sought in this case by way of writ of certiorari as required by Title 26, Section 297, Code of Alabama 1940, as Recompiled 1958.

Respondent filed his complaint against petitioner in the Circuit Court of Etowah County, seeking compensation for injuries suffered as a result of an accident arising out of and in the course of his employment.

A demurrer was filed but was never ruled on. Subsequent to the filing of the demurrer, the complaint was amended and an answer filed thereto.

Trial was had before the court sitting without a jury, and a judgment was rendered awarding compensation.

A motion for a new trial was filed and later overruled.

The respondent has asked this court, by motion, to strike the transcript of the testimony filed in the Circuit Court on the ground that said transcript was not filed within the sixty day period, as provided by Title 7, Section 827(1), Code of Alabama 1940, as Recompiled 1958.

There were 42 assignments of error filed with the record, but only 19 of them were argued in brief. Those assignments not argued are deemed waived. Supreme Court Rule 9.

Out of the 19 assignments argued, only one issue arises. Petitioner contends that respondent was not its employee within the meaning of the Alabama Workmen’s Compensation Law at the time of the accident.

We consider a brief recitation of the evidence taken at the trial to be helpful to an understanding of this case.

The respondent, John H. Wright, was employed by petitioner as a pharmacist in 1965.

The petitioner, Eddons Drug Company, Inc., is a corporation and is managed by Ed Anderson, who is also the president and one of the owners of the corporation, and the business of said corporation consists of one drug store located on Forrest Avenue in the City of Gadsden, Alabama.

Respondent worked full-time for petitioner from January 1965 up to November 1, 1967, when a store known as P & A Pharmacy was opened in Scottsboro, Alabama.

P & A Pharmacy was owned by Mr. Anderson and a Mr. Payne as a partnership.

Mr. Anderson asked respondent if he would operate P & A Pharmacy until someone else could be obtained to run it.

At the time respondent was asked to operate P & A Pharmacy, he was being paid weekly as an employee of petitioner, Ed-dons Drug Co., Inc., and nothing was said at that time about respondent becoming an employee of P & A Pharmacy.

After November 1, 1967 respondent started working at P & A Pharmacy, but his checks were still paid by Eddons Drug Company.

During the time respondent worked at P & A Pharmacy, he commuted to Scottsboro from his home in Gadsden, sometimes in his own car and sometimes in a vehicle owned by Eddons Drug. When he used his car, he was reimbursed for his expenses by P & A Pharmacy.

During the time respondent was working at P & A Pharmacy, he was also working at Eddons Drug at night during the week after returning from Scottsboro, on Wednesdays and every other Sunday.

[648]*648In fact, respondent stated that he would leave his home early in the morning, go by Eddons Drug and pick up money and supplies for P & A Pharmacy, drive to Scottsboro, open up, work all day, close the store, take the receipts for the day, drive to Gadsden, arrive at Eddons Drug about 8:00-8:30, turn the money from P & A Pharmacy over to Mr. Anderson, and work to about 10:00 p. m.

During this period of time, respondent was receiving $150 per week.

Then, in February 1968, although respondent started receiving his checks from P & A Pharmacy, these checks were given to him by Mr. Anderson at Eddons Drug in .Gádsden; and, he was also at the same time given an additional $30 in cash by Mr. Anderson, usually taken from the safe at Eddons Drug.

On the morning of July 9, 1968 while on his way to Scottsboro to open P & A Pharmacy, respondent was involved in an automobile accident in which he was injured, and spent several weeks in hospitals and under a doctor’s care.

On the night before the accident, respondent had gone by Eddons Drug and gathered together some stock to be taken to P & A Pharmacy the next morning. On the morning of the accident, respondent went by Eddons Drug and picked up the stock to carry to Scottsboro. The trip to Scottsboro was then undertaken. Prior to arriving in Scottsboro, the auto accident happened, resulting in serious back injuries to respondent.

Mr. Anderson was called and informed of respondent’s accident. Upon learning of the accident, Mr. Anderson went to Scottsboro and saw and talked to respondent before he was taken to the hospital in Centre, Alabama.

Mr. Charles Morgan, a CPA, testified that he kept the books for both Eddons Drug and P & A Pharmacy, and that he kept a separate set of books for each business.

Fie stated that he filed no separate quarterly return with the Internal Revenue Service for P & A Pharmacy until the third quarter of 1968, which ended on September 30, 1968. He further stated that prior to this time, Eddons Drug paid all payroll taxes on behalf of respondent to the Internal Revenue Service, but was reimbursed by P & A Pharmacy.

However, he did say that no payroll report was filed by P & A Pharmacy during the first quarter of 1968; the records reflect that Eddons Drug paid respondent’s salary for that quarter in the amount of $1950.

This witness also stated that he got all of his payroll information from Mr. Anderson and did not see or prepare any books of original entry.

He also added that the third quarter of 1968 was the first time that Eddons Drug had failed to report that it had paid respondent’s salary and that this was the first time that Mr. Anderson had failed to apportion a part of respondent’s salary to petitioner.

The W-2 forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service indicate that respondent’s salary was paid by petitioner during the first two quarters of 1968, and some of it was paid in the third quarter of 1968. The total wages paid by petitioner to respondent during 1968 amounted to $4,200.00. The W-2 forms also showed that $200 was paid by P & A Pharmacy on behalf of respondent’s salary in the third quarter of 1968.

The respondent stated that he was asked to operate the P & A Pharmacy temporarily, until some one could be obtained to operate it. Mr. Anderson, when asked what the arrangement was concerning respondent’s working at P & A Pharmacy, said he could not remember.

On the Motion

The respondent here has moved that we strike the transcript of the testimo[649]*649ny filed with the record in this case on the ground that said transcript was not filed with the clerk of the trial court within the sixty day period required by Title 7, Section 827(1), Code of Alabama 1940, as Recompiled 1958, after notice was given of the application for the writ of certiorari.

Section 827(1), supra, provides in pertinent part, as follows:

“ * * * If a party to a cause tried in such court desires to appeal from a judgment rendered, he shall, within five days after he perfects his appeal give notice to the court reporter, in writing, that he desires to appeal and request the evidence to be transcribed.

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Bluebook (online)
248 So. 2d 140, 46 Ala. App. 645, 1971 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 416, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/eddons-drug-company-v-wright-alacivapp-1971.