Indianapolis Power & Light Co. v. Southeastern Supply Co.

257 N.E.2d 722, 146 Ind. App. 554, 1970 Ind. App. LEXIS 465
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 23, 1970
Docket469A66
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 257 N.E.2d 722 (Indianapolis Power & Light Co. v. Southeastern Supply Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Indianapolis Power & Light Co. v. Southeastern Supply Co., 257 N.E.2d 722, 146 Ind. App. 554, 1970 Ind. App. LEXIS 465 (Ind. Ct. App. 1970).

Opinions

[556]*556Lowdermilk, C.J.

Appellee, plaintiff below, commenced its action against appellant, defendant below, to foreclose its lien upon funds owed to George Bahre d/b/a George Bahre Company, by the appellant. It is charged that George Bahre d/b/a George Bahre Company, hereinafter referred to as “Contractor” entered into an agreement by the terms of which said Contractor agreed to furnish all labor, equipment and materials, and to do all things necessary to remodel the then-existing building on real estate of the appellant located on the Indianapolis Circle, and to erect a new building contiguous and adjacent to the present structure.

The Contractor entered upon the performance of its contract, which, among other things, called for plastering improvements remodeled and erected on said real estate and appellee alleged that said Contractor engaged the services of Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., a plastering contractor, hereinafter known as “Plaster Contractor”, to do such paster-ing on improvements on said real estate of appellant.

Appellee further claimed that at the special instance and request of the said Plaster Contractor, appellee sold, furnished and delivered plastering materials to said Plaster Contractor of the reasonable value of $6,707.10. A bill of particulars of said plastering materials was attached to and made a part of the complaint.

Appellee further alleged that all of said materials were ordered expressly by the said Plaster Contractor from the appellee for the plastering of said improvements, and was furnished by appellee to said Plaster Contractor for that purpose, and were used by the said Plaster Contractor on the improvements of said real estate and are now a part thereof.

Appellee further claimed and alleged in its complaint that on October 11, 1966, and November 1, 1966, appellée gave written notice to appellant, particularly setting forth ap-pellee’s claim for materials furnished said Plaster Contractor [557]*557and used in the improvements of said real estate of appellant, and then and there notified the appellant in writing- that ap-pellee was holding defendant personally liable for the payment of such claim, pursuant to Burns’ Ind. Stat. §43-709.

It was further claimed and alleged that at the time of issuing such notices appellant had in its possession in excess of $100,000 due said Contractor and that it was the duty of appellant to then and there withhold the amount due from said Contractor of the claim of the appellee herein, and that the same was not done.

The appellee in its cause of action asked for $2,500 attorneys’ fees, plus the principal and interest alleged to be due to it.

The above statement of facts consists principally of the allegations of the complaint.

To the appellee’s complaint the appellant filed a demurrer stating the same did .not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action, together with its memorandum. The memorandum reasoned that Burns’, §43-709 did not apply. Appellant further complains that the complaint charged that appellant employed George Bahre d/b/a George Bahre Company as the general contractor for its new building; that Bahre employed Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., as one of its subscontractors to do the necessary plastering-. Appellant claimed further that appellee sold pastering materials to Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., which materials were used in plaintiff’s building. (This court assumes this obviously means appellant’s building.) The complaint further alleged that Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., did not pay appellee and that appellee served notice on appellant of its claim that appellant was indebted to Bahre in excess of $100,000.

Appellant further claimed in its memorandum that by the allegations of the complaint appellee claims to have furnished materials, but the complaint ■ does not allege that appellee rendered any services.

[558]*558The memorandum further charges that the statute has given a subcontractor of Bahre a right to claim from the property owner a sum due him out of the moneys appellant still owed Bahre, but claims further that this is not the case in question. Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., was fully paid and actually overpaid, and it is argued that appellee could not be considered a subcontractor of Bahre.

Appellee filed a memorandum in opposition to the said demurrer, setting forth therein that appellant owed the contractor more than $217,000 and notice was served on appellant by appellee and that appellant chose to disregard the notice and refused to deduct the amount due appellee or pro-rate the same to other valid claims, if any.

The said memorandum in opposition to appellant’s demurrer further claimed Burns’, § 43-709, was made not only for the protection of subcontractors and materialmen, but also for the protection of the owner; that appellee complied with the statute, appellant did not, and therefore appellee is entitled to the benefits of the statute.

A rather lengthy memorandum in reply to the memorandum of appellee in opposition to demurrer of appellant was submitted to the court, wherein it was contended, among other things, that Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., billed Bahre for work and materials used and Bahre paid the bills. Some of these materials, it is alleged, were supplied by appellee, but the materials were paid for when Bahre paid the Charles McGarvey Company, Inc. It was further claimed that neither Bahre nor the appellant had any control over whether the Charles McGarvey Company, Inc., paid appellee.

The case of Nash Engineering Co. v. Many Realty et al., 222 Ind. 396, is discussed, along with other cases.

The court overruled appellant’s demurrer to appellee’s complaint.

Following this, appellant filed its answer in two paragraphs under Supreme Court Rule 1-3A, the second paragraph being [559]*559affirmative, alleging full payment and that George Bahre d/b/a George Bahre Company had paid and, in fact, overpaid the Charles McGarvey Company, Inc.

Appellee filed demurrer to the affirmative paragraph of answer, alleging the same did not state sufficient facts to constitute a defense, together with a memorandum referring to Burns’ Ind. Stat. § 43-709. The memorandum sets out many of the facts heretofore stated in appellee’s memorandum in opposition to appellant’s demurrer.

The court overruled the demurrer to appellant’s affirmative paragraph of answer.

This was followed by a motion to reconsider ruling on demurrer and appellant’s memorandum in opposition to said motion which contained a very long and well reasoned argument supporting appellant’s contention. This was followed by appellee’s memorandum in opposition to appellant’s memorandum, and here again, the case was argued at length and the law was set out in another long and well reasoned argument.

The court, in its ruling on this, sustained appellee’s motion to reconsider the ruling on appellee’s demurrer to the affirmative answer, and set aside the previous ruling, overruling the demurrer, and sustained the same.

Appellee timely filed request for admissions, which were timely answered and on the same day appellant filed its objections to request for certain admissions, namely requests numbered 9,10 and 15.

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

Related

Gibson-Lewis, LLC v. Teachers Credit Union
854 N.E.2d 392 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 2006)
McCorry v. G. Cowser Construction, Inc.
644 N.E.2d 550 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1994)
McCorry v. G. Cowser Construction, Inc.
636 N.E.2d 1273 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1994)
Coplay Cement Co. v. Willis & Paul Group
983 F.2d 1435 (Seventh Circuit, 1993)
Coplay Cement Company, Inc. v. Willis & Paul Group
983 F.2d 1435 (Seventh Circuit, 1993)
Lee & Mayfield, Inc. v. Lykowski House Moving Engineers, Inc.
489 N.E.2d 603 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1986)
Indianapolis Power & Light Co. v. Todd
485 N.E.2d 632 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1985)
Matter of Hull
19 B.R. 501 (N.D. Indiana, 1982)
City of Evansville v. Verplank Concrete & Supply, Inc.
400 N.E.2d 812 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1980)
Lows v. Warfield
259 N.E.2d 107 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1971)
Apple v. Apple
274 N.E.2d 402 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1971)
Indianapolis Power & Light Co. v. Southeastern Supply Co.
257 N.E.2d 722 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1970)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
257 N.E.2d 722, 146 Ind. App. 554, 1970 Ind. App. LEXIS 465, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/indianapolis-power-light-co-v-southeastern-supply-co-indctapp-1970.