Ellerd v. Williams

404 So. 2d 1271, 1981 La. App. LEXIS 5250
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 29, 1981
DocketNo. 14612
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 404 So. 2d 1271 (Ellerd v. Williams) 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
Ellerd v. Williams, 404 So. 2d 1271, 1981 La. App. LEXIS 5250 (La. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

JASPER E. JONES, Judge.

Plaintiff, Raymond C. Ellerd, appeals a judgment rejecting his demand to annul a sheriff’s sale of a lot owned by him in an executory process proceeding initiated by defendant, John Williams. We affirm.

John Williams sold plaintiff a subdivision lot in Shreveport in 1976. Plaintiff delivered defendant his $6,000 monthly installment note secured by a mortgage on the property as part of the consideration for the lot. Plaintiff failed to timely pay the installment due on May 15, 1977, and probably had not paid at least one other earlier due installment on said note. On June 16, 1977 defendant sued to enforce collection of the note by executory process.

Since plaintiff resided in Albuquerque, New Mexico a curator was appointed to represent him. The curator notified plaintiff of the impending seizure and sale, and plaintiff advised the curator that he wanted to avoid the sale and requested the curator to obtain from defendant’s attorney the amount which would be required to pay off the note, which the curator did. Plaintiff was then advised that defendant would cancel the sale only if plaintiff paid the entire balance due on the note, plus interest, attorney’s fees, and all costs. The payoff figure effective through September 1 given the curator, and presumably transmitted to plaintiff, was $6693.11. Plaintiff advised the curator that he would have the funds to pay defendant on July 20, August 15, and August 20, and each time plaintiff was unable to borrow the funds necessary to pay defendant.

Because of plaintiff’s numerous failures to pay the note and costs defendant proceeded to have the sheriff’s sale set for September 21. Plaintiff finally succeeded in negotiating a loan with his employer in the amount of $6500 which was to be secured by a mortgage of the seized lot. The note and mortgage in the amount of $6500 to be executed by plaintiff was prepared by the curator and sent on September 19 to the Albuquerque National Bank who was representing plaintiff’s employer in connection with the loan. Plaintiff planned to come to Shreveport from New Mexico on the day of the sale to bring the money, but it was agreed between defendant’s attorney and the curator on the morning of the sale that plaintiff did not need to bring the money to Shreveport on the date of the sale. It was agreed that defendant’s attorney would buy the property at the sheriff’s sale in the name of defendant, and plaintiff would send the money to Shreveport. The curator would then deliver the money to defendant who would deed the property to plaintiff. [1273]*1273The payoff figure on September 21 was $6728.14. The curator discussed the whole transaction with plaintiff on the phone on the night of September 21. There is a dispute between defendant’s attorney and the curator as to when the money would have to be paid to the defendant in order for defendant to be required to reconvey the lot to plaintiff. Defendant’s attorney stated that the agreement was that the funds must be paid on September 22, the day following the sheriff’s sale. The curator testified the agreement was that the funds must be paid by September 26, which was five days after the sheriff’s sale. The curator testified the check arrived at his office September 26 and he advised defendant’s attorney of its receipt the same day and was advised that defendant would not accept the money and reconvey the property.

Plaintiff sued to have the judicial sale declared a nullity because of fraud and also sued for damages. An exception of no cause of action was sustained by the trial court. The judgment sustaining the exception was reversed by this court. Ellerd v. Williams, 864 So.2d 648 (La.App.2d Cir. 1978). The judgment now appealed was rendered following a trial on the merits.

A final judgment can be annulled if it was obtained by fraud or ill practices. LSA-C.C.P. art. 2004 1. A sheriff’s sale pursuant to judgment ordering executory process is subject to annulment for fraud or ill practices by the creditor and adjudicatee where no third rights have intervened. See Eilerd, supra, and authorities cited therein.

Plaintiff assigns as error the trial court’s refusal to annul the sale and award him damages.

Plaintiff contends that he was misled by defendant into believing that he need not pay the suit off before the sheriff’s sale or have his curator bid on the property at the sale because defendant promised to recon-vey the property to him if he sent the money by September 26. Plaintiff contends that defendant broke this promise by refusing to accept the money sent on September 26 and refusing to reconvey the property. It is this conduct that plaintiff contends is the fraud and ill practice which requires that the sheriff’s sale be annulled.

The trial judge refused to annul the judicial sale because he concluded that plaintiff failed to establish any fraud or ill practices had been practiced by defendant.

All the evidence established that the agreement as to when the money must be paid before defendant was required to convey the property back to plaintiff was made between defendant’s attorney and the curator. The trial judge found there was no clear agreement between the defendant’s attorney and the curator as to when the money must be paid because the defendant’s attorney testified that it was required to have been on the day following the sale, or September 22, whereas the curator testified that if the money was paid by September 26 the defendant was required to recon-vey the property.

The threshold issue presented on appeal is whether the plaintiff, through the curator who was serving as his attorney, tendered the required payoff by the required date.

The curator testified he received the money on September 26, and on the same day called defendant’s attorney preparatory to completing the reconveyance transaction, and was told by defendant’s attorney that defendant would not reconvey the property except for a much greater sum than the agreed payoff.

Defendant’s attorney testified that the curator did not advise him that he had received the money from plaintiff until September 27, and he stated that he documented the date of the call in his daily office diary which he had in his hand at the time he testified, and upon which he was cross-examined by plaintiff’s attorney.

[1274]*1274The trial judge did not decide whether the money had to be tendered by September 22 or by September 26, but rather made what we construe to be a finding of fact that the money was not tendered until September 27.

The trial judge in his written reasons for judgment stated:

“The evidence seems to indicate that it was actually Tuesday (Sept. 27) before Mr. McMichael (the curator) got in touch with Mr. Bookter (defendant’s attorney) and informed him that he had the check. That’s verified first by the time record of Mr. Bookter.”
The trial judge later stated:
“It was simply a case where the work was not performed in accordance with the contract timely.”

We conclude that the trial court here made a determination that even if the last date upon which the money could be paid was September 26 as stated by the curator, that it was not tendered until September 27 which was one day late.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
404 So. 2d 1271, 1981 La. App. LEXIS 5250, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ellerd-v-williams-lactapp-1981.