Green v. Pickens

473 S.W.2d 862, 251 Ark. 691, 1971 Ark. LEXIS 1203
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedDecember 20, 1971
Docket5-5675
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 473 S.W.2d 862 (Green v. Pickens) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Green v. Pickens, 473 S.W.2d 862, 251 Ark. 691, 1971 Ark. LEXIS 1203 (Ark. 1971).

Opinion

Conley Byrd, Justice.

Appellant Walter Green, a licensed real estate broker, brought this action against appellees Fred Pickens, administrator of the ancillary estate of T. A. Hester, deceased, M. W. Staples, Josephine Graham, T. H. Brown, K. N. Jones and T. A. Hester, Inc., to collect commissions and assert his rights as a joint venturer into three separate parcels of property. For convenience the properties will hereinafter be referred to as the (1) T. A. Hester and M. W. Staples, trustees, property, (2) T. A. Hester, Inc., property and (3) M. W. Staples and K. N. Jones, trustee, property. The Chancellor denied him the relief prayed and entered judgments on appellees’ counterclaims for commissions and secret profits obtained. For reversal appellant contends:

“I. The Court erred in excluding the testimony of Eugene Warren, attorney at law, on the basis of a privileged communication between Mr. Warren as attorney and Mr. T. A. Hester as a client.
II. The Court erred in invoking the ‘dead man’s statute’ preventing the appellant from testifying as to an oral agreement he had with T. A. Hester.
III. The Court erred in excluding that part of appellant’s testimony relating to his oral agreement with T. A. Hester, now deceased, on the grounds that such statements constituted hearsay.
IV. The Court erred in holding that enforcement of an oral agreement between appellant and T. A. Hester is barred by the Statute of Frauds.
V. The Court erred in holding that appellant’s claims were barred by the Statute of Limitations.
VI. The Court erred in dismissing appellant’s petition against M. W. Staples and K. M. Jones, trustees, with respect to the Pleasant Hills property.
VII. The Court erred in holding that appellant was guilty of misusing appellees’ funds.
VIII. Trial Court erred in its interpretation of Swindle v. Swindle.”

The first witness called by appellant was Eugene Warren, an attorney who had consulted jointly with appellant and T. A. Hester before any of the properties were purchased. The Chancellor erroneously excluded his testimony under the attorney client privilege. Morgan v. Wells, 242 Ark. 499, 415 S. W. 2d 223 (1967) and Laster v. Oldham, 189 Ark. 5, 69 S. W. 2d 1078 (1934). However, as suggested in Swindle v. Swindle, 242 Ark. 790, 415 S. W. 2d 564 (1967), the trial court caused appellant to proffer the testimony through an interrogation of the witness. Thus for purposes of this appeal and because of the disposition herein made, we are treating Mr. Warren’s testimony as uncontradicted even though appellees did not cross examine.

Without deciding the issues raised as to the “dead man’s statute”, hearsay, statute of limitations and statute of frauds, for purposes of disposing of the issues here we are treating the record as if all of the Chancellor’s rulings thereto were erroneous. We point out that the proffers of the evidence were made and are available in the record for review purposes.

Mr. Warren testified that in late 1962 or early 1963, Hester and Green came into his office. Green advised him that he and Hester had entered into an agreement whereby Mr. Green was to purchase property in the western part of Little Rock in Pulaski County for Hester and his associates upon a price agreed to by Hester. The conditions that Hester had placed in the agreement caused Green some anxiety because of the litigation which Green had had in the case of Green v. Jones-Murphy Properties Inc., 232 Ark. 320, 335 S. W. 2d 822 (1960). According to Warren’s understanding of the agreement, Hester insisted that Green was to receive the standard real estate commission for the purchase of the property and was to obtain all he could of that from the seller. It was Warren’s understanding that, in addition, Green was to be caretaker of the property, was not to obligate Hester or his associates without their prior approval, and Green was to have the right to sell the property and to receive the standard real estate commission.

THE HESTER — STAPLES TRUSTEE PROPERTIES: In his petition, Green, with reference to these tracts, alleged that he had entered into a joint venture whereby T. A. Hester and M. W. Staples, trustees, would furnish the money and Green would seek and find real estate to purchase. For his efforts, Green would participate in the joint venture to the extent of 10 % of the purchase price, would manage the properties through to an ultimate sale for profit and would then participate in such sales to the extent of ten percent of the sales price. Pursuant to this plan he bought the Hickey tract for $225,000 and for his efforts was paid $5,062.50 leaving a balance owing him of $17,437.50; pursuant to such agreement he obtained the Collins tract for $200,000 and was paid compensation or fees in the amount of $19,-696.00 leaving a balance due of $204.00; pursuant to such agreement he acquired the Wilson tract for $20,000 and was paid $2,000; and that pursuant to the same agreement he purchased the Johnson tract for $136,000 and was paid $13,600 for his efforts. On direct examination Green testified substantially as alleged and that this agreement had been breached. On cross-examination it developed Green had not purchased the Collins tract for $200,000 but that in fact he had purchased the same for $188,800 and obtained $8,496,000 commission from the seller. He also admitted that he had received $200,000 from Hester, Staples and Josephine Graham. Green testified that he purchased the Wilson tract for $22,000, the amount he had collected from Hester, Staples and Graham, but his offer and acceptance showed a purchase price of $20,000. Having alleged and testified to a purchase price of $136,000 for the Johnson tract and the collection of a commission of $13,600, it developed on cross-examination that the tract, according to Green’s own records, had been purchased for $122,000 and that from Hester, Staples and Graham he had received checks totalling $136,000.

T. A. HESTER, INC., PROPERTIES: The allegation of Green here and his testimony on direct were that he had a joint venture agreement whereby T. A. Hester, Inc., was to supply $300,000 to purchase real property. According to the agreement, T. A. Hester, Inc., was first to receive 6% interest on its investment, Green was next to receive 6% commission and one half of any profits remaining. Pursuant to such agreement Green testified that he purchased seven tracts of land as follows:

Cooper tract $ 8,500.00
Kanis Road tract 16,000.00
Boydston tract 42.200.00
Rush tract 13.500.00
Downie tract 18,000.00
Asher Road tract 10,000.00
Reusser tract 78.500.00

Defendants’ exhibit No. 21, the closing agent’s settlement sheet, shows a purchase price of $8,500 for the Cooper tract from which were deducted $50.00 for an attorney’s opinion and $350.00 for an appraisal fee. Defendants’ Exhibit No. 42 is T. A. Hester, Inc’s., settlement sheet with Green after the Cooper tract was sold.

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Bluebook (online)
473 S.W.2d 862, 251 Ark. 691, 1971 Ark. LEXIS 1203, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/green-v-pickens-ark-1971.