Flag Oil Corp. v. Triplett

1937 OK 248, 68 P.2d 108, 180 Okla. 154, 1937 Okla. LEXIS 598
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedApril 13, 1937
DocketNos. 25105, 25106.
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 1937 OK 248 (Flag Oil Corp. v. Triplett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Flag Oil Corp. v. Triplett, 1937 OK 248, 68 P.2d 108, 180 Okla. 154, 1937 Okla. LEXIS 598 (Okla. 1937).

Opinion

GIBSON, J.

These appeals are from the district court of Custer county. The causes were consolidated in the trial court and have been consolidated here for purposes of review.

The defendant in error J. A. Triplett was the owner of certain certificates of stock in the Weatherford Building & Loan Association upon which certificates he executed an assignment in blank and delivered the same to E. J. Son, a stock salesman, pursuant to a purported agreement with Son, as the alleged agent of the Flag Oil Corporation of Delaware and the Flag Company. Incorporated, concerning Triplett’s purchase of certain stock in said Flag Oil Corporation. Thereafter Son sold and delivered the certificates to Charles S. Stand-ley for a valuable consideration.

After the sale and delivery of the building and loan certificates by Son to Stand-ley, said Triplett commenced an action against the Flag Oil Corporation of Delaware, the Flag Company, Incorporated, E. .T. Son, and AVeatherford Building & Loan Association, seeking to restrain said association from transferring said certificates on its books or canceling and cashing same, and to cancel the above-mentioned agreement wherein Triplett had agreed with the alleged agent of the Flag Oil Corporation and Flag Company, Incorporated, concerning the purchase of stock in said Flag Oil Corporation, and praying that said certificates be adjudged to be the property of the said Triplett.

In that action Triplett was awarded a temporary restraining order. Thereafter Standley commenced his action against the association seeking a writ of mandamus to *155 compel transfer of the building and loan stock to bis name upon tbe books of tbe association. Standley was thereupon made a party defendant in the first action, and tbe causes were then consolidated.

The issues as made up resolved themselves into one of fraud on tbe part of Son as agent in procuring tbe certificates from Triplett, and Standley’s knowledge of such fraud at the time be purchased said certificates from Son.

The trial court found that the certificates were procured from Triplett through fraud and that Standley was charged with knowledge thereof, and rendered judgment for Triplett against all defendants as prayed, and also rendered judgment for Standley against the Flag Oil Corporation and the Flag Company, Inc., and E. J. Son for the amount paid out by him for the certificates. From the judgment as so rendered in the consolidated causes these appeals have been taken.

Defendant in error Triplett filed his motion to dismiss the appeals, which motion, except the amendments thereto, has heretofore been considered by the court and denied. It is charged in the original motion, and here reasserted, that the appeals are duplicitous in that the appellants have undertaken by appeal upon a single case-made to reverse several judgments against the parties, which judgments do not affect all alike.

The plaintiffs in error have heretofore obtained an order of this court permitting the consolidation of the two appeals. To the one original case-made the parties have attached their petitions in error. The judgment pronounced by the trial court in the consolidated cases affects all plaintiffs in error alike, except that part thereof which gives Standley a judgment over and against the two Flag companies. Those two companies and E. J. Son have joined in their assignments of error, and Stand-ley has filed his separate petition in error. All the assignments so presented affect 'all parties joining therein alike. The two Flag companies have filed their cross-petition assigning errors common to and affecting them alone. The assignments of error have, therefore, been properly presented so as to apply only and alike to the parties joining therein.

Appeals prosecuted in the foregoing manner do not violate the rule announced in Harper v. Stumpff, 84 Okla. 187, 203 P. 194, as follows:

“Where the parties have undertaken by one appeal upon one petition in error and one ease-made to reverse two or more judgments this court will dismiss such an attempted appeal for duplicity.”

Here, although it is contended that the trial court entered two distinct judgments, there are, nevertheless, proper petitions in error attached to a case-made which pi’op-erly incorporates the entire proceedings h'ad on trial of the consolidated cases where in fact one judgment was entered, a portion of which did not affect all the parties alike.

We conclude that where two or more causes are consolidated for trial and appeal, as was done here, if petitions in error are attached to one proper case-made, and the assignments of error are properly presented, we find no objection to a review of the errors complained of in both causes, although but one case-madte is filed.

As further ground for dismissal of the appeals, Triplett asserts that Standley has recognized the validity of the judgment against him and has accepted the benefits thereof, thus- destroying his right to appeal from such judgment.

It is shown that after the trial court pronounced judgment against all the plaintiffs in error, Standley moved to amend his pleadings so as to seek judgment over and against his codefendants for the amount paid out by him for the certificates. The motion was sustained and the amendment made. Judgment was then entered for Standley against his codefendants for the sum demanded. Standley then secured a transcript of said judgment and filed the same in the district court of Oaddo county, seeking thereby to establish a lien upon any property said codefendants may have owned in that county.

Triplett says that the foregoing acts of Standley constituted a recognition of the validity of the judgment against Standley and deprives him of the right to appeal therefrom under the rule expressed in Haskell v. Ross, 71 Okla. 46, 175 P. 204, as follows:

“Any act on the part of a defendant by which he impliedly recognizes the validity of a judgment against him operates as a waiver to appeal therefrom, or to bring error to reverse it.”

See, also, City of Lawton v. Ayres, 40 Okla. 524, 139 P. 963; Elliott v. Orton, 69 Okla. 233, 171 P. 1110; Ingram v. Johnson, 71 Okla. 171, 176 P. 241; Home Builders Lbr. Co. v. White, 75 Okla. 294, 183 P. 725; *156 Ingram v. Groves, 84 Okla. 159, 202 P. 1019; Johnson v. First Nat’l Bank, 93 Okla. 194, 220 P. 47.

By his pleadings Standley sought to establish his title to the certificates and, in the alternative, he sought to recover the value thereof from the parties allegedly responsible for his loss in event he should fail to establish his title.

Although we may find no fault with this character of pleading, it is obvious that the pleader may not pursue his remedies to final satisfaction of his claims asserted under both. When he is granted) relief under on© remedy and recognizes the validity of tiie judgment granting such relief, he recognizes the validity of that portion of the judgment denying the relief sought by the other remedy. Here Standley obtained judgment against his codefendants and immediately set about to enforce the same by establishing, or attempting to establish, a judgment lien in another - county.

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Bluebook (online)
1937 OK 248, 68 P.2d 108, 180 Okla. 154, 1937 Okla. LEXIS 598, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/flag-oil-corp-v-triplett-okla-1937.