Fleet v. Hooker

1936 OK 772, 63 P.2d 988, 178 Okla. 640, 109 A.L.R. 272, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 920
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedDecember 8, 1936
DocketNo. 27077.
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 1936 OK 772 (Fleet v. Hooker) 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
Fleet v. Hooker, 1936 OK 772, 63 P.2d 988, 178 Okla. 640, 109 A.L.R. 272, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 920 (Okla. 1936).

Opinion

WELCH, J.

This is an original action for writ of prohibition to prevent the enforcement of an order of the district court of Oklahoma county requiring petitioners to in-terplead in a cause pending therein, and set up what right, title, and interest they claim in certain real estate located in Coal county, Okla., and enjoining them from interfering with said lands.

In 1933 the holder of two promissory notes given by one E. W. Whitney, an individual, brought suit in the district court of Oklahoma county upon the same. The notes were unsecured and the petition therein set up no legal or equitable claim against any specific property owned by the said Whitney. Therein numerous other parties were made defendants, and it was alleged that these other defendants were creditors of Whitney, and had theretofore procured judgments against him in Oklahoma county and other counties of the state, without naming said counties or such judgments. It was further alleged that there were various judgment liens and ottur liens against various properties of the defendant Whitney held by these other defendants, without detailing any such liens, judgments, or claims. It was alleged that the defendant Whitney owned property in Oklahom'a county, describing specifically some real estate in Oklahoma county, and that such defendant owned various other properties in various counties within the state, without specifying in derail any of such properties or where located. It was asserted that if the liens of the other defendants were enforced, all the properties of the defendant Whitney would be dissipated and wou’d be of little benefit to Whitney’s creditors generally, and that Whitney was or would become insolvent; but it is to be observed general’y from the allegations that if all of tbe defendant Whitney’s properties were taken into possession by a receiver, the same could be managed in such manner as to pay Whitney’s debts and be of benefit to Whitney and his creditors.

The petition prayed for personal judgment against Whitney for the amount of the notes and for the appointment of a receiver of all of the defendant Whitney’s properties generally.

It appears that the defendant Whitney made no objection to the appointment of a receiver, and it further appears that several, if not all, of the various other defendants either acquiesced in the appointment or affirmatively consented to or requested the same, whereupon the court made its order appointing a receiver for all of the properties generally belonging to the defendant Whitney within the state of Oklahoma. It may be worth while to note that neither the order nor any of the proceedings specifically referred to the real estate located in Coal county with reference to which these petitioners are concerned. Neither of these petitioners were made parties to that suit.

Some time thereafter these petitioners sought leave of the district court of Oklahoma county to interplead in the cause therein pending, with the view of setting up (heir claim against .the defendant AVhitney. This request was refused by the court, and these petitioners were not then made parties to the suit. , Some time thereafter these petitioners brought suit in Pontotoc county against E. W. AAUiitney, and upon trial obtained a personal judgment against Whitney for some $82,000. This judgment became final, after which tlm same was transcribed to Coal county, where the same appears of record as a lien upon lands therein located belonging to Whitney.

Thereafter the receiver applied to the district court of Ok’ahoma county for an order making these petitioners parties defendant in that cause and requiring them to therein plead what right, title, and interest they claimed or asserted in the Coai county land belonging to Whitney. It was therein alleged that these petitioners were interfering with the management, control, and possession of the receiver of the Coal county land belonging to Whitney by creating record liens thereon. These petitioners were served with summons upon th? filing of such application, and appeared specially in said cause a tacking the jurisdiction of the district court of Oklahoma county to determine their rights in and to the Coai county laud. After hearing, the court entered the order already referred to, from which the pe'itioners herein seek relief.

Among other contentions, the petitioners, in support of their application for the Writ *642 of prohibition, take the position that a mere contract creditor of an individual, having no legal or equitable claim or lien against some specific property of his debtor, is not entitled to the appointment of a receiver over the debtor’s property, and an order appointing a receiver in such case is void for 'ack of jurisdiction of the court over (he subject-matter. They also contend that (he appointment of a receiver of property not involved in the litigation is void for the same reason.

An examination of section 773, O. S. 1931, reveals specific statutory authority in this state for the appointment of a receiver in an action by a vendor to vacate a fraudulent purchase of property, or by a creditor to subject any property or funds to his claim. Such provision, as well as other provisions of the statute, clearly relate to property belonging to an individual. We observe from the statutory provisions, however, that in such cases as therein provided the appointment of a receiver for the property of an individual appears (o be confined to cases where one of the objects of the suit or litigation is to subject some specific property to a legal or equitable lien or claim, or where some specific property itself is the object of the suit, and our examination of the first four subdivisions of the statute referred to fails to reveal what we consider an intention on the part of the Legislature to grant specific authority to the courts to appoint a receiver over' the property of an individual, except as ancillary to an action directed in some manner at the specific property over which the receiver is appointed. We do not think that any of these provisions authorize appointments of a general receiver over an individual’s properly in the absence of litigation involving in some manner the specific property for which receivership is sought.

The fifth subdivision of the statute does provide for the appointment of a receiver over the property of a corporation when the corporation has been dissolved or is insolvent or in eminent danger of insolvency, or when it has forfeited its corporate rights. We are not justified, however, in assuming that this provision relating to corporations is applicable to or includes the property of an individual. The language employed does not permit of such cons’ruction, and it is obvious that had the Legislature so intended, unmistakable language could have easily been employed.

The sixth subdivision of the statute provides for the appointment of a receiver: “In all other cases where receivers have heretofore been appointed by the usages of the courts of equity.”

We thus observe that our statute is broad and liberal in the grant of authority for the appointment of receivers and extends to the customary usages of courts of equity, and we feel justified in a broad. examination of the authorities and usages of courts with equitable jurisdiction, notwithstanding the petitioners’ suggestion that our s'atutory provision contained in section 773, supra, excludes the power of the courts to appoint a receiver in cases such as we have here, under the rule of “expressio unius est ex-clusio alterius.”

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Bluebook (online)
1936 OK 772, 63 P.2d 988, 178 Okla. 640, 109 A.L.R. 272, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 920, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fleet-v-hooker-okla-1936.