Keilman, Tr. v. City of Hammond

114 N.E.2d 813, 124 Ind. App. 392, 1953 Ind. App. LEXIS 183
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 23, 1953
Docket18,445
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 114 N.E.2d 813 (Keilman, Tr. v. City of Hammond) 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
Keilman, Tr. v. City of Hammond, 114 N.E.2d 813, 124 Ind. App. 392, 1953 Ind. App. LEXIS 183 (Ind. Ct. App. 1953).

Opinions

Royse, J.

Appellant is the owner of certain improvement bonds (commonly known as Barrett Law Bonds) issued by the City of Hammond. He brought this action against appellee to recover monies paid to appellee by property owners to be applied by it to the payment of his bonds.

Appellant’s complaint was in four paragraphs. For the purpose of deciding the question presented herein each contains the same averments. After averring the bonds were regularly issued, the complaint is, in part, as follows:

“Plaintiff further alleges that bonds were issued in anticipation of said assessment collections in denominations of five hundred dollars each; that [396]*396said bonds were issued in ten equal series, one series payable each year over the ten year period, from funds to be collected annually to be paid in satisfaction of said bonds and the interest coupons, in accordance with the requirements of the respective series, by said city from the interest and principal of the assessments so collected.
“Plaintiff further alleges that from year to year as the assessments accrued, many of the assessments were paid in to the City at the Treasurer’s Office and collected by the City; that upon the maturity of each of the respective bonds referred to in this complaint, they were respectively presented to the City Treasurer of the City of Hammond, Indiana, for payment, and the payment of same respectively demanded; that payment was refused; that on or about the first day of December, 1933, the City Treasurer of defendant stamped each of said respective vonds and interest coupons as follows: ‘Not paid for want of funds, Henry Heckler, City Treasurer’.
“Plaintiff further alleges that as the installments of special assessments came due from time to time for the payment of the bonds and interest coupons, evidencing the interest on the bonds, some of such assessments were paid; that some of the assessments for the payment of said bonds were defaulted and allowed to remain in default until after said bonds came due, and that said bonds came due December 1, 1933; that at the time said bonds came due a substantial amount of the assessments for the payment of same had been paid by the owners assessed into the treasury of the defendant City for the purpose of paying said bonds, and that said defendant was and is now chargeable therewith; that a substantial amount additional was thereafter paid in to the defendant City of Hammond for purpose of paying said bonds; that defendant city is chargeable therewith; that the bonds heretofore herein referred to are the respective bonds sued upon in each respective paragraph of this amended complaint; that each of the bonds referred to in each separate paragraph of the amended complaint were presented to the City Treasurer of defendant City and payment de[397]*397manded, and full payment refused for want of sufficient funds; that partial payments were made by said City of December 29, 1939; $46.00 to apply on principal and $75.00 to apply on the interest; and that partial payments were again made by the defendant City on the bond sued upon on each paragraph of this amended complaint on January 27, 1942, at which time the sum of $4.00 was paid on each of said bonds; and that on September 25, 1942, the additional sum of $47.68 was paid to apply on each of the respective bonds sued upon in the respective paragraphs of this amended complaint.
“That at the time of said respective payments endorsements were placed on each of said respective bonds in like amounts by said City by its Treasurer, reading as follows:
“PARTIAL PAYMENT OF THIS BOND
Date Paid Amount Paid Balance Due
12-29-39 $46.00 $454.00
1-27-42 4.00 450.00
9-25-42 47.68 402.32
RAY J. MADDEN, TREASURER, LAKE COUNTY
“PAYMENT OF DELINQUENT INTEREST
Date Paid From To Interest
12-29-39 6-1-33 12-1-35 $75.00
RAY J. MADDEN, TREASURER, LAKE COUNTY
“That the sums so indicated were actually paid on said bonds on the dates so endorsed thereon by said City.”

Each bond is then set out in the complaint and the notation of non-payment and partial payment is stamped on the back thereof. It is then averred:

“That there is due the plaintiff from the defendant City of Hammond from the funds paid to and collected by said City as aforesaid on said Bond [398]*39810, Series 2, and interest coupons attached, the sum of $447.32 with interest at six per cent per annum from December 1, 1935.”

To this complaint appellee demurred on the grounds the complaint did not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. In the memorandum to its demurrer appellee says the complaint shows on its face that it is barred by the ten-year statute of limitations and that it appears on the face of the complaint the action is not within any of the exceptions to the statute of limitations. It says the allegation of payments long after the maturity of the bonds is insufficient because, as a matter of law and fact, the money paid was not the money of the City of Hammond; that even if it was a payment by the City it did not waive the statute because the City Treasurer had no such authority. The demurrer was sustained. Appellant refused to plead over and judgment was rendered against him. The error assigned here is the ruling of the trial court on the demurrer.

Appellant contends his complaint does not show on its face that it does not fall within any of the exceptions to the statute of - limitations. He further asserts the statute is tolled indefinitely until the money is paid to the City Treasurer by the property owners. Finally, he says the complaint shows the statute was tolled by the partial payments on the bonds in issue.

It is well settled and the parties agree that unless it clearly appears that the case does not fall within any of the exceptions to the statute the question cannot be raised by demurrer. Flanagan, Indiana Pleading and Procedure, pp. 23-24, §12, Comment 9.

Section 48-4404, Burns’ 1950 Replacement, provides, in part, as follows:

[399]*399“It shall be the duty of the proper officer, as herein designated, to stamp on every such bond and coupon presented for payment the date of such presentation and a statement as to whether the same was paid or not on account of want of funds. Upon request of the holders of any matured bond or coupon, it shall be the duty of the officer charged with the payment thereof to make a record thereof, together with the name and address of the holder, and to notify such holder by mail immediately when funds are available to pay the same. Such notices shall be sent in the order in which requests for notices have been made.”

Section 48-4405, Burns’ 1950 Replacement, provides:

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Keilman, Tr. v. City of Hammond
114 N.E.2d 813 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1953)

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Bluebook (online)
114 N.E.2d 813, 124 Ind. App. 392, 1953 Ind. App. LEXIS 183, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/keilman-tr-v-city-of-hammond-indctapp-1953.