Everson v. Phelps

206 P. 306, 104 Or. 288, 26 A.L.R. 780, 1922 Ore. LEXIS 19
CourtOregon Supreme Court
DecidedApril 27, 1922
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 206 P. 306 (Everson v. Phelps) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Oregon Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Everson v. Phelps, 206 P. 306, 104 Or. 288, 26 A.L.R. 780, 1922 Ore. LEXIS 19 (Or. 1922).

Opinion

McCOURT, J.

Plaintiff commenced this action to recover a commission alleged to have been earned by him under a contract of employment to sell, or find a purchaser for, certain real and personal property, within a specified time.

This appeal is from a judgment of nonsuit granted by the Circuit Court upon motion of defendant, made at the conclusion of plaintiff’s evidence, and brings here for review the determination of the trial court that the services essential to entitle plaintiff to a commission under his contract of employment were not performed within the time specified in the contract.

On June 2, 1920, plaintiff and defendant entered into a written contract as folows:

“Agreement.
“Tillamook, Oregon, 6/2, 1920.
“I hereby appoint A. C. Everson my agent 30 days to sell or contract in my name to sell the real estate owned by me viz: 88 acres in Sec. 33, T. 1 S. R. 9 West, including 37 cows, 2-1 year H. heifer, 2 Bulls, 4 pigs, C. W. Team, H. Wagon. All implements— Chickens. One dozen. Price $45000 — Terms $2000. Balance 60 per cent, and if a sale is made or a purchaser found or I send a buyer who takes property [290]*290at said price and terms or any other price and terms that I may hereafter authorize or accept, I agree to pay snch agent a cash commission of $1000, and if through said agent a trade or exchange .for other property is consummated, said trade or exchange to be authorized or accepted by me, I agree to pay said agent the above commission in cash on the price which above property, or any part thereof, is traded or exchanged.
“I agree to convey to purchaser title in fee simple, by warranty deed and furnish abstract of title. Subject to original contract.
“Agency to be revoked only by giving - days
notice in writing. Invoice of place found on back. I accept agency on above terms.
“A. C. Everson, N. W. Phelps.
“Agent. Owner.”

On July 2, 1920, the date upon which plaintiff’s employment under the writing expired, plaintiff found in the person of one Karl Reding a purchaser for defendant’s property, at the price and upon the terms authorized by defendant, and Reding paid to plaintiff as earnest-money, the sum of $500, agreeing to pay the balance of the cash payment of $2,000, which defendant required, as soon as the papers evidencing the sale should be executed.

While showing Reding the property, plaintiff introduced him to the defendant as a prospective purchaser, but all the negotiations for the sale were carried on by plaintiff, with the result that Reding orally agreed to purchase the property, and paid $500 earnest-money, as stated; memoranda were exchanged between plaintiff and Reding, reciting the terms of the sale, and although they were insufficient .to constitute a binding contract, nothing remained to .be done to complete the sale authorized by defendant, but the exchange between defendant and Reding of writings evidencing the transaction [291]*291and payment by Reding of $1,500, the balance of the first payment npon the purchase price.

Plaintiff immediately notified defendant that he had found a purchaser for the property upon the terms set forth in the above contract of employment and informed defendant that Karl Reding was such purchaser and had paid $500 as earnest-money upon the sale; defendant expressed himself as pleased and satisfied with the result; upon the next day or perhaps the second day thereafter, defendant and his wife, together with Karl Reding, the purchaser, came to the office of the plaintiff to conclude the transaction. Defendant did not own the property included in the sale, but held a contract to purchase the same from one Fred Maurer, upon which defendant owed about the sum of $36,000, for the payment of which he had agreed that there should be applied 60 per cent of the proceeds of the milk produced upon the place. Under the terms of the sale defendant had authorized plaintiff to make, the purchaser was required to make a like application of the proceeds of the milk sales, but upon the balance of $43,000, remaining after the initial payment of $2,000. The sale, however, was to be made subject to the Maurer contract, and if the entire 60 per cent of the milk sales was applied on the sum due Maurer, the interest accruing upon the $7,000 that would be payable to defendant, must come from some other source, or its payment be deferred until the Maurer claim was fully paid. Reding objected to the suggestion that he devote a portion of the remaining 40 per cent of the milk sales to the payment of interest on defendant’s portion of the purchase price, and defendant objected to foregoing interest payments until Maurer was paid.

[292]*292Upon the occasion of their meeting in plaintiff’s office, as aforesaid, defendant and the purchaser failed to agree npon the terms of the contract between them as to the interest payments mentioned; they left plaintiff’s office, together, and thereafter agreed upon the manner in which the interest should be apportioned and paid; two holidays intervened, and on the sixth day of July, 1920, defendant and Reding entered into and executed a contract, which in substance and effect was the same as the contract of sale negotiated by plaintiff; Reding immediately took possession of the property purchased by him. Neither Reding nor defendant demanded from plaintiff the deposit of $500 made by Reding, but defendant refused to pay more, claiming that plaintiff was not entitled to a commission, and defendant asserted that he had concluded a contract with Reding different from ‘ the contract he had authorized plaintiff to negotiate.

Under the contract of employment defendant agreed as follows:

“If a sale is made or a purchaser found # * who takes property at said price and terms or any other price or terms that I m.ay hereafter authorize or accept, I agree to pay said agent a cash commission of $1000.”

Plaintiff was authorized by his contract of employment to contract in the name of the defendant to sell the property in question, but he was not required to do so in order to earn the commission provided by the contract. He was entitled to the compensation provided by the contract, if within the time specified therein, he found and made known to defendant a purchaser who was ready, able and willing to purchase the property at the price and [293]*293terms fixed by the defendant in plaintiff’s contract of employment: Kyle v. Rippey, 20 Or. 446, 453 (26 Pac. 308); York v. Nash, 42 Or. 321, 330 (71 Pac. 59); Good v. Smith, 44 Or. 578, 585 (76 Pac. 354); Henry v. Harker, 61 Or. 276, 286, 291 (118 Pac. 205, 122 Pac. 298); Oregon H. Builders v. Montgomery Inv. Co., 94 Or. 349, 362 (184 Pac. 487).

Plaintiff not only produced a purchaser ready, able and willing to purchase the property upon the terms fixed by the defendant, but the defendant accepted such purchaser and actually concluded a sale to him at the price and upon substantially the terms negotiated by plaintiff.

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Bluebook (online)
206 P. 306, 104 Or. 288, 26 A.L.R. 780, 1922 Ore. LEXIS 19, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/everson-v-phelps-or-1922.