Goodwin v. Riverside Heights Orange Growers Ass'n

264 P. 560, 89 Cal. App. 306, 1928 Cal. App. LEXIS 121
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 17, 1928
DocketDocket No. 4895.
StatusPublished

This text of 264 P. 560 (Goodwin v. Riverside Heights Orange Growers Ass'n) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Goodwin v. Riverside Heights Orange Growers Ass'n, 264 P. 560, 89 Cal. App. 306, 1928 Cal. App. LEXIS 121 (Cal. Ct. App. 1928).

Opinion

VALENTINE, J., pro tem.

The above action was brought by plaintiff as administrator of the estate of Wm. H. H. Goodwin, deceased, to recover the sum of $2,771.96, which plaintiff claims is due him on account of oranges received by defendant from two properties formerly owned by said deceased. One property was located in San Bernardino *307 County, California, and was known as the Moorman Hill or San Bernardino County property; the other was located in Riverside County and was known as the Iowa Avenue or Riverside County property.

The following facts are not disputed: That between December 14 and December 20, 1919, defendant and respondent entered into an agreement with said Wm. H. H. Goodwin, deceased, wherein and whereby defendant agreed “to pick, hand pack, ship and market all the citrus fruit now growing on his [Goodwin’s] land and all that, during the term of this agreement, may be grown upon his lands and premises.” It is conceded that the two ranches above mentioned were the lands and premises referred to.

The agreement was to continue for five years unless terminated on November 15th of any year by either party giving written notice during the last fifteen days of the preceding August. It is not claimed that it was so terminated. Other provisions of the contract are not material here.

On January 14, 1920, Wm. H. H. Goodwin in writing notified defendant that he had leased his grove to W. A. Pfunder and S. D. Vincent, and to make all payments for December, 1919, and for the future, to them. That thereafter defendant during the years 1920 and 1921 made the following payments by check to the parties whose names appear after the respective amounts:

Date Amount Parties March 2, 1920............ ..........$895.75 Pfunder & Vincent June 28, 1920............ .........451.50 it a it August 19, 1920 ......... Jennie Cook January 31, 1921......... if It February 8, 1921........ ......... 100.00 it tt March 8, 1921........... it « May 4, 1921............. ......... 150.00 it U May 26, 1921............. ......... 150.00 it tt June 15, 1921........... it it August 11, 1921......... ......... 407.25 it tt

No claim is made by plaintiff for the amount of $895.75 paid March 2, 1920. In addition, defendant has in its possession the sum of $162.69, which is the aggregate of the amount retained by defendant from the sale of the *308 oranges taken from the San Bernardino County property, and certain refunds. Appellant only claims payments commencing with June 28, 1920.

On or about January 27, 1920, Wm. H. H. Goodwin executed two deeds to said Jennie Cook, one for the property in Riverside County and the other for the property in San Bernardino County. Wm. H. H. Goodwin died in San Bernardino County on May 6, 1920. On May 7, 1920, the above two deeds from him to Jennie Cook were recorded. Defendant was first notified of Goodwin’s death on May 10, 1920. On May 18, 1920, notice of pendency of action was filed by plaintiff (this appellant) in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, respectively, in actions against said Jennie Cook et al., to set aside the aforesaid deeds. Judgment was rendered October 10, 1921, in the action in Los Angeles County of Frank J. Goodwin as administrator of the estate of Wm. H. H. Goodwin, deceased, against Jonathan Snyder, Jennie Cook et al., setting aside these deeds, and ordering said Jennie Cook to forthwith account to the plaintiff for all of his receipts and disbursements in the matter of her occupation, maintenance, and control of said parcels of real property in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, providing that plaintiff have judgment for any property shown to have been received and retained by her “since she has been in possession of said real property.” (Italics ours.)

There is much argument in appellant’s and respondent’s briefs as to the law establishing the right of parties to the crops from lands which are out of the possession of the owner of the land, tending to show that where one is in alleged possession and subsequently ousted that, where possession is recovered by the owner, he takes the growing crops with the land, but that crops harvested are the property of the one in unlawful possession, and the owner’s remedy is only to recover the rental value of the land, citing Page v. Fowler, 39 Cal. 412, 416 [2 Am. Rep. 462], Rector v. Lewis, 46 Cal. App. 168 [188 Pac. 1018], Grossman v. Yip Wing et al., 62 Cal. App. 121 [216 Pac. 634], and Halleck v. Mixer, 16 Cal. 574, 579, all tending to show that defendant (respondent) was justified in making these payments to Jennie Cook while she was in possession under these deeds, *309 even if they were subsequently set aside and the plaintiff restored to possession.

But appellant states that the only question in this suit is whether the death of Win. H. H. Goodwin revoked the order to defendant to pay Pfunder and Vincent, and argues that if it did, defendant is liable to plaintiff because defendant never had any authority to make the payments to Jennie Cook.

Without reference to the last proposition at this time, we think this fairly states the issue, because if Goodwin’s death did not revoke the order to pay Pfunder and Vincent, they and not plaintiff would be the only ones entitled to object to the payments being made to Jennie Cook or to anyone else.

Under the order which Goodwin gave defendant January 14, 1920, to pay the money to Pfunder and Vincent, it is conceded by appellant that “the defendant was protected in making the payments as they became due to Vincent and Pfunder until the order was revoked.” So that it clearly does not concern plaintiff to whom the money was paid until he has shown that the order was revoked. The respondent, having paid this money once and nothing appearing to show it was not paid in good faith, is entitled to ask, as it does, that the rule be strictly invoked that the burden is upon the plaintiff to prove the necessary facts to entitle him to recover.

The plaintiff (appellant) in support of his contention cites section 2356 of the Civil Code, as follows:

“The power of the agent ... is terminated as to every person having notice thereof, by
“1. Its revocation by the principal;
“2. His death, or
“3. His incapacity to contract.”

We think he should have quoted the entire section, the remainder of which reads as follows:

“Unless the power of an agent is coupled with an interest in the subject of the agency, it is terminated, as to every person having notice thereof, by:
“1. Its revocation by the principal;
“2. His death; or,
“3. His incapacity to contract.”

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Related

Grossman v. Yip Wing
216 P. 634 (California Court of Appeal, 1923)
Cox v. Hughes
102 P. 956 (California Court of Appeal, 1909)
Buena Vista Oil Co. v. Park Bk. of L. A.
180 P. 12 (California Court of Appeal, 1919)
Rector v. Lewis
188 P. 1018 (California Court of Appeal, 1920)
Travers v. Crane
15 Cal. 12 (California Supreme Court, 1860)
Halleck v. Mixer
16 Cal. 574 (California Supreme Court, 1860)
Page v. Fowler
39 Cal. 412 (California Supreme Court, 1870)
Norton v. Whitehead
24 P. 154 (California Supreme Court, 1890)

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Bluebook (online)
264 P. 560, 89 Cal. App. 306, 1928 Cal. App. LEXIS 121, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/goodwin-v-riverside-heights-orange-growers-assn-calctapp-1928.