Independence State Bank v. Drohen

58 P.2d 260, 144 Kan. 39, 1936 Kan. LEXIS 183
CourtSupreme Court of Kansas
DecidedJune 6, 1936
DocketNo. 32,852
StatusPublished

This text of 58 P.2d 260 (Independence State Bank v. Drohen) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Independence State Bank v. Drohen, 58 P.2d 260, 144 Kan. 39, 1936 Kan. LEXIS 183 (kan 1936).

Opinion

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Hutchison, J.:

The appeal in this case is by James W. Drohen, one of three defendants, against whom a judgment of foreclosure was rendered in favor of the plaintiff bank involving certain shares of corporate stock owned by him, which the plaintiff claimed had been pledged to it by A. W. Drohen, a brother of the appellant, to secure an indebtedness of A. W. Drohen to the plaintiff bank, the appellant [40]*40denying any knowledge, consent or authority from him to the pledging of the same. The case was tried by a jury and a verdict and judgment were rendered in favor of the bank, to the effect that the stock had' been legally pledged as security for the brother’s indebtedness, and the judgment authorized the sale of the same for the payment of the indebtedness.

The main questions involved in the appeal are errors in the instructions given and errors in overruling two motions for a new trial and in rendering judgment for the plaintiff.

Judgment was originally rendered against all three defendants by default after personal service on each of them, being a personal judgment against A. W. Drohen on his notes held by the bank and against all three of them foreclosing the stock owned by each of them separately and held to have been pledged as security. The appellant herein on subsequent application had the judgment against him and his stock set aside. He, with the consent of the court, answered denying that he had ever pledged the stock or authorized any one to give or deliver the stock to his brother or the bank for that purpose, and alleged that any and all such deliveries were made without his knowledge, consent or approval, and that he did not learn of such delivery of stock until May, 1932, when his brother told him that it was pledged to the plaintiff bank; that he never approved or ratified the delivery, that he never assigned or endorsed the stock to the bank and that any claimed assignments thereof were forgeries. This answer was verified and plaintiff filed a reply consisting of a general denial.

The original stock of the appellant was 300 shares in the Prairie Pipe Line Company, which the brother said he procured from the wife of the appellant at different times in 1931 and delivered them to the bank as security on his notes. The brother testified that he sent assignment certificates to appellant in Oklahoma for his signature thereto, which he says were returned to him by mail bearing a signature which he thought was the appellant’s, and after witnessing the same he delivered such assignments to the bank. These assignments were on separate sheets and not on the stock certificates.

In March, 1932, the Prairie Pipe Line Company consolidated with another company, and the new company was called the Consolidated Oil Company, which issued to the appellant 420 shares of stock for the 300 shares in the original company. The bank arranged for this transfer and exchange of stock, and new assignments were said [41]*41by the brother to have been presented to the appellant and delivered back to the brother by the appellant, and by the brother delivered to the bank.

The appellant on the witness stand denied having made any assignments, and after examining the same said the signatures thereto were not his but were forgeries. He also supported the allegations of his answer as to his not knowing of the delivery prior to May, 1932, nor consenting to or ratifying'any such delivery or assignment.

An officer of the bank testified that the notes of the brother were renewed in April, 1933, and that in June, 1933, he sent for the appellant, and when he came to the bank in response they looked at the assignments and talked the matter over about the stock being pledged as security for the brother’s notes. This action was commenced in September, 1933, and the first judgment by default was rendered in December, 1933, and set aside shortly thereafter as to appellant.

The plaintiff used two witnesses, the brother and an officer of the bank, and also introduced the several alleged assignments. The appellant was his only witness in defense, and he introduced two letters, being the correspondence between himself and the Consolidated Oil Company. It is largely a fact case ánd there are serious conflicts in the oral testimony.

The appellant complains of the introductory remarks in the instructions to the jury defining the issues as follows:

“The bank claims the stock was pledged as security for the payment of said indebtedness, and the defendant, J. W. Drohen, claims it was not.”

The appellant claims that the court overlooked the real issues, which were whether or not the signatures to the assignments were genuine or forgeries, and whether or not appellant consented to, approved or authorized the pledging of his stock to plaintiff for his brother’s debt.

Appellant insists that the statement of the court was so indefinite that it told the jury nothing, citing Honick v. Railway Co., 66 Kan. 124, 71 Pac. 265, and Insurance Co. v. Despain, 77 Kan. 654, 95 Pac. 580, in support of his criticism and against the ignoring of any of the issues formed by the pleadings and supported by the proof. An introduction in instructions is not intended to contain an enumeration of all the elements in detail involved in the issues. The term "pledged as security” covers the two ways mentioned by the appellant, as consummating or effecting such pledging. Pledging as se[42]*42curity may be accomplished by assignments which will be ineffective if they are forgeries. Likewise consent, approval or ratification, if established, may constitute a pledging of securities. Both these controverted matters were necessarily included in the introductory statement. Besides, they are both set out in detail in subsequent instructions, forgeries being treated as being no endorsement whatever. Even if the statement did not entirely cover the issues, it is not a serious matter for two reasons: First, it was held in Lee v. Downing, 113 Kan. 329, 214 Pac. 786, that—

“The mistake of the court in stating the issues formed by the pleadings is not a ground of reversal where it appears that the contested issues in the case Were fully tried out and submitted to the jury in other instructions given by the court.” (Syl. ¶ 4.)

And second, the appellant made no request for modification or change and in fact filed no requested instructions. In Judy v. Buck, 72 Kan. 106, 82 Pac. 1104, it was held:

“In the absence of a 'request to do so it is not error for a trial court to omit to instruct the jury upon special phases of the case, where proper general instructions have been given.” (Syl. ff 3.)

Also, in Railroad Co. v. Noland, 75 Kan. 691, 90 Pac. 273, it was held:

“When it is desired to have particular questions of law presented to the jury a written request should be made to the court so to instruct.” (Syl. IT 5.)

Instructions Nos. 2, 3 and 4 are particularly assigned as being erroneous. Nos. 2 and 4 are said to deal with abstract statements of law, and the case of Kastrup v. Yellow Cab and Baggage Co., 124 Kan. 375, 260 Pac. 635, is cited as applicable because in that case the last instruction grouped all the elements contained in the earlier ones, which was there held to have been misleading. Here the court in instruction No.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

First Nat'l Bank of Modesto v. Wakefield
83 P. 1076 (California Supreme Court, 1906)
Honick v. Metropolitan Street-railway Co.
71 P. 265 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1903)
Judy v. Buck
82 P. 1104 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1905)
Burgess v. Hixon
88 P. 1076 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1907)
St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad v. Noland
90 P. 273 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1907)
Halloway v. Arkansas City Milling Co.
93 P. 577 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1908)
Pacific Mutual Life Insurance v. Despain
95 P. 580 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1908)
Lee v. Downing
214 P. 786 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1923)
Christy v. Central State Bank
234 P. 984 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1925)
Kastrup v. Yellow Cab & Baggage Co.
260 P. 635 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1927)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
58 P.2d 260, 144 Kan. 39, 1936 Kan. LEXIS 183, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/independence-state-bank-v-drohen-kan-1936.