Jones v. United Savings and Loan Association

515 S.W.2d 869, 16 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 179, 1974 Mo. App. LEXIS 1285
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedAugust 27, 1974
Docket35156
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 515 S.W.2d 869 (Jones v. United Savings and Loan Association) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jones v. United Savings and Loan Association, 515 S.W.2d 869, 16 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 179, 1974 Mo. App. LEXIS 1285 (Mo. Ct. App. 1974).

Opinions

GUNN, Judge.

Defendant-appellant, United Savings and Loan Association, appeals from a declaratory judgment of the circuit court finding plaintiffs-respondents, Gerald and Carrie Jones, husband and wife, to be the owners of two savings certificates issued by United Savings and ordering payment of the face value of the certificates, plus interest. We hold that United Savings is not obligated to honor payment of the certificates to the Joneses and thereby reverse the judgment of the trial court. The pertinent facts leading to our ruling follow.

In order to shore up the financially distressed First State Bank of Bonne Terre, the bank’s president, James B. Crismon, made arrangements with United Savings to borrow $875,000. Part of the convoluted financial arrangements for the loan required Crismon to issue checks to United Savings for $155,000 on the date of the loan closing and for United Savings to issue Crismon and his wife two savings certificates of $20,000 each. August 5, 1970 was the closing date in Bonne Terre for the Crismon loan, and United Savings issued the two $20,000 certificates. Cris-mon, in turn, erroneously gave United Savings’ officer checks totaling only $105,000 — not $155,000 as obligated. The next day, August 6, United Savings discovered the $50,000 shortage, and a telephone call was made to Crismon who said he would check into the matter. Although Crismon did acknowledge the $50,000 deficiency to United Savings, he never did cover the deficit, and on August 18, after repeated demands upon Crismon to pay the $50,000, United Savings notified Crismon in writing that the certificates had been cancelled. Meanwhile, during the period between the issuance and cancellation of the certificates, Crismon and plaintiff Gerald Jones were busy with their own financial manipulations.

Jones was president of the Bank of Keytesville and also a director of Cris-mon’s bank, The First State Bank of Bonne Terre. On August 7, 1970 — the day after Crismon had been advised by United Savings of the shortage — Jones, as president of the Keytesville Bank loaned the Crismons $50,000 and received the two United Savings $20,000 certificates as collateral for the loan. The certificates were endorsed by the Crismons and assigned to [871]*871the Bank of Keytesville by separate document. At the same time, Jones was trying to sell his stock in the Bank of Keytesville in order to pay back a personal loan for $90,500 he had received from The First State Bank of Bonne Terre. Jones was able to secure buyers for his Keytesville Bank stock, but as a condition of the sale, Jones agreed with the buyers to purchase back the Crismon $50,000 note and the two United Savings certificates securing it for the discounted sum of $27,500. On March 9, 1971, after the new owners of the Keytesville State Bank had made request of United Savings and were refused transfer of the two certificates, Jones did purchase the Crismon note and the stock certificates for $27,500. Jones then requested United Savings to transfer the two certificates to his name, but his request was also refused. Jones and his wife thereupon filed suit to require United Savings to transfer the ownership of the two certificates to them alleging that they were holders in due course of the two certificates free from any defense that United Savings might have available. The trial court found that there was no failure of consideration for the issuance of the two certificates to the Crismons; that the negligence of United Savings permitted the certificates to be put into commerce; that the certificates were properly pledged to the Joneses as loan security under § 369.170 RSMo 1969, V.A.M.S., which relates to the transfer of savings and loan association accounts.

We disagree with the trial court’s findings. We first determine that the securities in question were not negotiable instruments. § 400.3-104 of the Missouri Uniform Commercial Code 1 provides:

“(1) Any writing to be a negotiable instrument within this article must
(a)be signed by the maker or drawer; and
(b) contain an unconditional promise or order to pay a sum certain in money and no other promise, order, obligation or power given by the maker or drawer except as authorized by this article; and
(c) be payable on demand or at a definite time; and
(d) be payable to order or to bearer.
(2) A writing which complies with the requirements of this section is
⅝ ⅝ * ⅝ ⅜ ⅜
(c) a 'certificate of deposit’ if it is an acknowledgment by a bank of receipt of money with an engagement to repay it;”
(Emphasis Added)

The two certificates involved provided only that they were held by the Cris-mons. There was no provision for their being payable to order or bearer. It was recited'on the face of each certificate that it was subject to the laws of Missouri. Since these certificates were not payable to order or bearer, they were not negotiable instruments.

Second, since the certificates were not negotiable, there can be no holder in due course, and the Joneses are therefore not holders in due course of the certificates as they allege. § 400.3-805 RSMo 1969, V.A. M.S., specifically provides that there can be no holder in due course of an instrument which is not payable to order or to bearer. Thus, under § 400.3-306 RSMo, V.A.M.S., the Joneses took the certificates subject to the defense of failure or want of consideration.

Third, United Savings did have a right to cancel the two certificates. Cris-mon was deficient in payment to United Savings by $50,000 at the loan closing, and United Savings cancelled the two $20,000 [872]*872certificates by reason of the shortage. At the loan dosing, United Savings had received $105,000 from Crismon, but it chose not to apply any of that $105,000 to the savings certificates. Instead, the certificates were cancelled because of the deficit. As creditor, United Savings was entitled to apply the unspecified payments of the debt- or, Crismon, to any account owing. Title Insurance Corp. v. United States, 432 S.W.2d 787 (Mo.App.1968); Madison v. Dodson, 412 S.W.2d 552 (Mo.App.1967). There was, therefore, no payment or consideration given for the two certificates. United Savings did not have to apply the $105,000 to the savings certificates, and it did not.

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Related

King v. Smith
572 S.W.2d 200 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1978)
In Re Estate of King
572 S.W.2d 200 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1978)
Jones v. United Savings and Loan Association
515 S.W.2d 869 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1974)

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Bluebook (online)
515 S.W.2d 869, 16 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 179, 1974 Mo. App. LEXIS 1285, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-united-savings-and-loan-association-moctapp-1974.