Ferro v. Bouche

1 Pelt. 37
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 24, 1917
DocketNO. 7253
StatusPublished

This text of 1 Pelt. 37 (Ferro v. Bouche) 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
Ferro v. Bouche, 1 Pelt. 37 (La. Ct. App. 1917).

Opinion

CHARLES F. CLAIBORNE, JUDGE.

This is an ejectment suit under the provisions of Act 313 of 1908 p.479.

On November 19th. 1917 plaintiff filed petition In which he alleged that by act dated October 18th.l917 he purchased the property No.5317-23 South Franklin Street from lira. John Vlllemeur; that at -the time of his purchase the property was occupied by defendant under a written lease from the vendor,Mrs*Véllemeur, beginlng October 1 — 1916 and ending September SOth.1917 at the yearly rental of $432 duly registered in the Conveyance Office;that notwithstanding the expiration of said lease by limitation the said defendant still occupied said property and refused to vacate it; the plaintiff further averred that he was anxious to obtain the possession of said property, and he prayed that the defendant be cited summarily by rule, to show cause why Judgment should not be rendered condemning him to vacate said premises, and for a writ of possession against him!

The rule was made returnable on November 23rd.l917.

Defendant filed several exceptions^only two of which have been insisted upon in this Court. They are that the District Court was without Jurisdiction of this proceeding ratione materlae, and that plaintiff's petition disclosed no legal right of action in that, as purchaser^ he was not entitled to the summary proceedings by rule provided by Act 313 of 1908.

He also answered that at the time plaintiff purchased the property the lease had expired; but that prior to Its expiration on September 30th. 1917 he had renewed said [39]*39lease with Mrs. Villemeur, who was then the owner of the property, for the term of one year begining October 1st. 1917 and ending September 30th»1918; he denied that there existed any contractual relations between him and plaintiff as landlord and tenant; or that there was any tacit reconduction of the original lease; and averred that plaintiffls only right was a petitory action under ordinary legal process.

On the- return day of the rule, November 23rd.,there was judgment for plaintiff. Prom this judgment defendant took a suspensive appeal returnable to this Court on December 10th.1917.

Before the return day of the appeal,plaintiff and appellee procured the transcript from the District Court and lodged it in this Court on November 30th. 1917. On the same day he obtained from this Court an order specially assigning this case fpr trial for December 7th, 1917.

Thereupon the defendant and a.pellant moved this Court to set aside the order fixing this case for trial for December 7th. upon the ground that appellee had no right to obtain the transcript and file it in this court, and that the case could not legally be fixed before the return day.

Article 590 of the Code of Practice says:" If the appellee prefers tc have judgment on the appeal he nay obtain a copy of the record from the lower court, and bring it up to the appellate court, and may pray for judgment, or for the dismissal cf the appeal, in the same manner as if the record had been brought up by the appellant. See also C.P.884.

In Barbarin vs. Armstrong 2La.208 the transcript was not brought up by either the appellant or the appellee; it was filed by the Clerk of the Parish Court. The Court sustained the action of the Clerk, and enter[40]*40taj.ned a motion to affirm the judgment with damages.

In State ex rel Duffel vs. Marks 30A.70 the Court said that any interested party was authorized to file the transcript -in order to protect the constitutional right of appeal.

In Wheeler vs. Wilson 137La.975 the Court recognized the right of the appellee to file the transcript of appeal before the return day, to have the case put on the preference docket if it was entitled to be there^and to move to have it fixed for trial on a special day as a preference case. ^

These decisions establish beyond a doubt the right of the appellee in this case to have brought up the transcript. The motion of appellant to Set aside appellee's proceedings in this respect is denied.

The right of appellee to have his case fixed by preference in the appellate court was also granted by law. Sec. 2163 of the Revised Statutes provides that:

"All suits for the expulsion of tenants, brought in pursuance of this act shall at all times be tried by preference in the Supreme Court of this State, any law or laws to the contrary notwithstanding."

In State ex rel Matt vs. Judge 37A.843 the Supreme Court said that the proceedings for the ejectment of tenants under sections 2155-2156 of the Revised Statutes were "summary" and entitled to be fixed in the appellate court after three days notice — also 22A.293.

When section 2153 of the Revised Statutes was held to be repealed by Act 550’of 1884 which vested the Supreme Court with authority "to regulate the trial of causes before lt"^that tribunal decided that "the policy of the law and the better administration of justice required a speedy trial of causes" of ejectment and , "on that ground" granted an order to fix .the trial of the case, after three days' notice. Godchaux Vs., Bauman 44A.253, See also 16A.182, C.'r:. !,66«

[41]*41The defendant also pleaded want of jurisdiction in the District Court. The defendant occupied the premises as a tenant under a lease for one year begining October 1st. 1916 and ending September 30th.1917 for the yearly rent of $432.00.

Section 2156 of the Revised Statutes provides that:

"Whenever the monthly or yearly rent paid by the tenant, or the lease which he shall allege to hold shall exceed the sum of one hundred dollars, then the summary proceeding allowed by the preceding section for the possession of leased property shall be instituted or carried on before any parish or district court having competent jurisdiction in the manner provided in the preceding section, and the cases shall at all times be tried by preference, after three days' notice."

Articles 126 and 143 of the Constitutions of 1898 and 1913 confer upon Justices of the Peace throughout the State and upon the City Courts of the Parish of Orleans jurisdiction in " suits by landlords for possession of leased premises when the monthly or yearly rent, or the rent for the unexpired term of the lease does not exceed" the amount of one hundred dollars.

Whatever may be the ambiguity of expression contained in these statutes, whatever may have been the former jurisprudence interpreting them, whatever may be our own opinion concerning their meaning, we are bound by the latest dpinion of the Supreme Court upon the subject. In the case of Dreyfus vs. Process Oil Co.140La. 50 the Court said that the amount of the "yearly rental" in excess of one hundred dollars fixed the jurisdiction in the District Court, after the lease had expired.

The defendant also pleaded that the plaintiff was without right of action for two reasons: first, because plaintiff had not leased the property to defendant, and second, because, on the date of the filing of the suit, the lease had expired by limitation and had not been con[42]*42tinued by reconduction, and plaintiff's only remedy Was by petitory action.

The answer to the second proposition is the lahguage of the Act 313 of 1908.

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Bluebook (online)
1 Pelt. 37, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ferro-v-bouche-lactapp-1917.