First National Bank v. Paulson

295 N.W. 84, 70 N.D. 383
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 26, 1940
DocketNo. 6699
StatusPublished

This text of 295 N.W. 84 (First National Bank v. Paulson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
First National Bank v. Paulson, 295 N.W. 84, 70 N.D. 383 (N.D. 1940).

Opinion

Christianson, J.

This is an appeal by the defendants from an order of the district court of Stutsman county confirming a mortgage foreclosure sale.

The order was made after hearing had under § 2, chapter 165, Laws 1939, which provides: “When any mortgage or other lien has been foreclosed by action, the court shall, on the coming in of the report of •sale, on the request of any party who has been personally served with a summons or who has appeared, cause notice of hearing thereon to be served on the parties to the action who have appeared, and fix the time and place for hearing on said report. Before granting an order confirming said sale, the court shall, if it appears upon due examination that the sale price is unreasonable and unfairly inadequate, or that justice has otherwise not been done, order a resale.” Laws 1939, chap. 165, § 2.

The material facts are substantially as follows: The plaintiff is the owner of a mortgage on 480 acres of land in Stutsman county in this state. The mortgage was executed in October 1934. Default was made in the payment of the debt secured by the mortgage, and thereupon the plaintiff, in January 1938, instituted this action in the district court of Stutsman county to foreclose the mortgage. Such proceedings were had in the action that on August 27, 1938, a judgment was rendered and docketed in said district court whereby it was adjudged that there was due and owing to the plaintiff on the indebtedness secured by the mortgage the sum of $5,913.45, and further adjudging that the mortgage be foreclosed and the mortgaged premises, or so much thereof as might be sufficient to raise the amount adjudged to be due, be soli On October 24, 1938, a sale was had and the prem[387]*387ises were sold to the plaintiff for $1,680. The defendants filed objections to the confirmation of the sale and tbe trial court made an order vacating the same, pursuant to tbe provisions of § 3, chapter 161, Laws 1937, on tbe ground that tbe amount bid by tbe plaintiff was unreasonable and unfairly inadequate and ordered that a resale be bad. First Nat. Bank v. Paulson, 69 N. D. 512, 288 N. W. 465. Thereafter such proceedings were bad that on January 19, 1940, a resale was had. Tbe plaintiff submitted a bid of $1,570.48. This was tbe only bid submitted. Tbe bid was accepted and tbe premises were struck off to tbe plaintiff for-the amount bid by him. At tbe time of tbe sale there were taxes outstanding against tbe property aggregating $829.52. In due course tbe plaintiff presented to tbe court tbe sheriff’s report of sale and asked that tbe sale be confirmed. Tbe defendant filed written objections to tbe confirmation and asked that plaintiff’s application for confirmation be denied and that tbe court order a resale of tbe premises on tbe grounds that tbe price bid was “unreasonable and unfairly inadequate and that justice has otherwise not been done.” A bearing was bad upon the issues thus raised, at which both sides appeared and introduced evidence. Several witnesses were sworn and testified. Tbe evidence discloses that tbe plaintiff did not content itself merely with tbe publication of tbe legal notice of sale. This notice was supplemented by advertisements in tbe principal newspapers in tbe county in which tbe land is located. These advertisements were prominently displayed and called attention to tbe sale. These were further supplemented by personal letters calling attention to the sale, written by tbe attorney for tbe plaintiff to tbe defendant administrator as well as to persons engaged in the real estate business in tbe locality where tbe land is situated. Testimony was adduced as to tbe value of tbe land. Tbe witnesses called by tbe plaintiff and those called by tbe defendant differed widely as to such value. Two witnesses called by tbe plaintiff testified that tbe market value of tbe land at tbe time of tbe sale was approximately $5 per acre. A witness called by the defendant testified that, in bis opinion, tbe land was worth $6,000 in all, or $12.50 per acre. Evidence was also adduced tending to show that' tbe defendants were financially able to make redemption.

In a memorandum opinion tbe trial court said:

“Where tbe mortgagor or bis successors have tbe means to redeem; [388]*388or can redeem, they have an adequate remedy. The reason for a moratorium law during the past years was to protect the mortgagors during the economic depression, so that their property might not be sacrificed. The moratorium is intended for debtors who through no fault of their own are unable to protect their property through other lawful means.

“The evidence here shows that the defendants have $2,700 in money at this time which is more than enough to redeem the land and pay all the back taxes. . . .

“The land is probably worth a little more than $5 an acre. I think the testimony of Mr. Wolfer that it is probably worth $8 an acre is about correct.”

The transcript of the evidence submitted as a part of the record on this appeal sustains these statements of the trial court.

No question has been raised as to the appealability of the order sought to be reviewed on this appeal (nor was any question raised as to the appealability of the order involved on the former appeal), and inasmuch as the order doubtless is subject to review in some appropriate appellate proceeding in this court, we deem it proper to dispose of the questions presented on the merits without, however, committing ourselves to the view that such order is appealable should that question be directly raised in another case in the future. Johnson v. Great Northern R. Co. 12 N. D. 420, 422, 97 N. W. 546.

Appellants contend that it was incumbent upon the trial court to make findings of fact and conclusions of law as required by § 7639, Comp. Laws 1913, and that the failure to do so constitutes reversible error. The contention is not well-founded. Section 7639, Comp. Laws 1913, reads: “In giving the decision the facts found and the conclusions must be separately stated. Judgment upon the decision must be entered accordingly.”

This section does not purport to apply to a decision made upon a motion, where no judgment is rendered, and the final determination is evidenced by an order. Waymire v. California Trona Co. 176 Cal. 395, 168 P. 563; Minneapolis Trust Co. v. Menage, 86 Minn. 1, 93 N. W. 1. The section is applicable only to cases, where there is a trial by the court of an issue of fact, arising upon material averments, presented by formal pleadings, and “where the decision of the court fol[389]*389lowing tbe findings is a judgment.” Comp. Laws 1913, §§ 7603, 7605, 7609, 7637, 7639; Waller v. Weston, 125 Cal. 201, 57 P. 892; Minneapolis Trust Co. v. Menage, 86 Minn. 1, 93 N. W. 1, supra; Waymire v. California Trona Co. 176 Cal. 395, 168 P. 563, supra; 64 C. J. p. 1228.

Appellants objected to the confirmation of the sale on the grounds that the sale price was tinreasonable and unfairly inadequate and that justice had otherwise not been done. The order confirming the sale constituted a finding by the trial court against the appellants upon the questions, both of law and fact, raised by the objections to the confirmation of the sale. But the trial court did not content itself with the mere entry of a formal order confirming the sale. The trial court prepared and filed an extended memorandum decision wherein the views of the court as to the evidence and the effect thereof were clearly stated.

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Related

Waymire v. California Trona Co.
168 P. 563 (California Supreme Court, 1917)
First National Bank v. Paulson
288 N.W. 465 (North Dakota Supreme Court, 1939)
Waller v. Weston
57 P. 892 (California Supreme Court, 1899)
Johnson v. Great Northern Railway Co.
97 N.W. 546 (North Dakota Supreme Court, 1903)
Minneapolis Trust Co. v. Menage
90 N.W. 3 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1902)
First State Bank of Aberdeen v. Thuet
93 N.W. 1 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1903)

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295 N.W. 84, 70 N.D. 383, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/first-national-bank-v-paulson-nd-1940.