First Nat. Bank in Hemphill v. Crocker

80 S.W.2d 442
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 21, 1935
DocketNo. 2613
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 80 S.W.2d 442 (First Nat. Bank in Hemphill v. Crocker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
First Nat. Bank in Hemphill v. Crocker, 80 S.W.2d 442 (Tex. Ct. App. 1935).

Opinion

WALKER, Chief Justice.

On the 10th day of October, 1927, J. A. Harley and wife deeded to- T. F. Crocker a, certain tract of land in Sabine county for the consideration, in part, of a series of eight vendor’s lien notes, each, for the sum of $59.75, maturing yearly on the 1st day of November, with interest at the rate of 8 per cent, per annum and 10 per cent, additional as attorney’s fees; both in the note and in the deed a vendor’s lien was retained against the land to secure the payment of the notes. On or about the 19th day of October, 1927, all of these notes were lawfully transferred to Senator W. R. Cousins, who, on or about the 27th day of January, 1928, transferred all of them to the First National Bank of Hemp-hill, indorsing them and guaranteeing their payment. That bank was subsequently liquidated and its assets transferred to the First National Bank in Hemphill, appellant herein. In 1928 a payment of $40 was made upon the principal amount of note No. 1; on the 20th day of September, 1929, a payment of $42.75 was indorsed on this series of notes, but subsequently erased. On the 25th day of March, 1932, appellant instituted this suit, upon the above-described notes, against T. F. Crocker and Senator Cousins as in-dorser and guarantor. The maker answered by plea of- general demurrer and general denial, Senator Cousins answered by, a similar plea, and further that, for a valuable consideration, he had been released from his in-dorsement and guaranty. In substance, the special answer was that all parties agreed that Crocker should deed the land back to Mrs. Harley; that-she should execute to the bank her note for the amount due on the Crocker notes; that the bank should accept her note in lieu of the Crocker note; that Senator Cousins should be released and the Crocker notes surrendered to Crocker. It was further pleaded that certain rent was due Cro'cker on the premises; that Senator Cousins claimed the right to appropriate this rent on the payment of the vendor’s lien notes; that Crocker owed an individual note to the bank in addition to the vendor’s lien notes which the bank wanted paid; that in the agreement by which Senator Cousins was released all parties consented and agreed that the bank should have this rent money and apply it as a credit on Crocker’s individual note. By reason of the facts thus pleaded, Senator Cousins prayed that he be released from his indorsement and guaranty.' The bank made no defense of innocent purchaser ; no issue on the liability of the maker was submitted to the jury.

On the issues between appellant and appel-lee Senator Cousins, the jury found the following facts: (1) Appellant agreed to accept the note of Mrs. Harley “instead of the note sued upon”; (2) at all times after November 1, 1929 (the date of the settlement), Mrs. Harley was ready and willing to execute the note as per her agreement with appellant; (3) appellant represented to appellee Cousins that, it was accepting Mrs. Harley’s note “in place of the note sued upon”; (4) appellee Cousins relied upon the representations of [443]*443appellant; (5) appellant prepared a deed for execution by Crocker “for tbe purpose of transferring tbe lands involved in tbis cause to Mrs. Harley”; (6) at .all times after November 1, 1929, Crocker “was ready and willing to execute such deed” ; (7). appellant represented to appellee Cousins “that he was released from all liability on tbe indebtedness sued upon; (8) appellee Cousins “relied upon such representations” ; (9) “there was a consideration for tbe release.” In connection with issue No. 9, tbe following definition of “consideration” was submitted to tbe jury: “In this connection tbe Court instructs you that the term ‘Consideration’ means something of value passing to tbe First National Bank of Hemphill from tbe defendant Cousins, or some third party, or tbe refraining by tbe defendant Cousins from tbe doing of some act which be bad a right tó do, and tbe failure to do which resulted in the loss of something of value to tbe -defendant Cousins.”

On tbe verdict of the jury and the undisputed evidence, judgment was entered in favor of appellant against T. F.' Crocker for $715.26, tbe amount of tbe notes, principal, interest, and attorney’s fees, with foreclosure of the vendor’s lien as prayed for; and in favor of appellee Cousins that be “go hence without day, and be discharged from any and all liability asserted against him herein, and with his costs in this behalf expended.” All issues submitted to the jury had support both in the pleadings and in the facts. Mr. Crocker was to deed the land back to Mrs. Harley, Mr. Harley having died since the execution of the original deed. Mrs. Harley was to execute to the bank her note for the amount of the Crocker notes, in lieu of the Crocker notes. The. Crocker notes were to be canceled and surrendered to. Crocker. Senator Cousins agreed to waive his claim to the rent money as a credit on the Crocker notes and that the amount of the rent money should be paid to the bank on an > individual note of Crocker. Senator Cousins, by virtue of the agreement, was to be released, and in fact was released, from his guaranty and indorsement, that being the very terms of the agreement as made between the parties on or about the 1st day of November, 1929. It was further agreed as a part of this transaction that Mrs. Harley should- take possession of the premises as her own, which she did, and appropriated the proceeds of the premises. It was further agreed that appellant should prepare the deed to be executed by Crocker to Mrs. Harley and the note to be executed by Mrs. Harley to appellant,- and to present these papers to them for execution. These papers were, in fact,. prepared under the direction of the bank, but never presented for execution: The testimony- was further to the effect that Mr. Crocker was at all times after the agreement ready, able, and willing to execute the deed, and that for a reasonable time after the agreement Mrs. Harley was ready to execute the note. The evidence was further to the effect that Senator Cousins relied on the agreement that he was released, made no further claim to the rent money on the premises due in the fall of 1929, and dealt with the First National Bank of Hemphill at all times subsequent to the agreement and prior to its ■ liquidation on the theory that he had been released, and from the date of the agreement in November, 1929, to the liquidation of the bank in 1931, no further demand was made upon Senator Cousins for payment of the note. We quote as follows from the-testimony of Senator Cousins:

“ * * * The bank had a note against Crocker which wasn’t a land note and he had moved to another county.- Now if they could go over there and get Crocker to come in and apply the rent that Mrs. Harley and I had a right to apply on the note then they would satisfy themselves with Mrs. Harley, and had I not been released I would have been up there demanding that that rent go on those land notes, and that is the reason I was so positive about being released.
“ * * * The bank wanted to get Crock-er’s money and would rather hold Mrs. Harley than Crocker, and they were trying to get that property back in Mrs. Harley with those notes so that they could hold Mrs. Harley and collect Crocker’s note independent of a land note.
“ * * * Mrs. Harley was to get the land back. She was to satisfy the bank. I think Mr. Pate told me that may be — may be before and after, I had several conversations— she was to make satisfaction with the bank and I was to be released. I know she wanted her home back. (Mr. Pate was representing the bank.)
“ * * * Q. The point I am getting at is, Mr.

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80 S.W.2d 442, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/first-nat-bank-in-hemphill-v-crocker-texapp-1935.