Klett v. Security Acceptance Co.

242 P.2d 873, 38 Cal. 2d 770, 1952 Cal. LEXIS 222
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedApril 17, 1952
DocketSac. 6170
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 242 P.2d 873 (Klett v. Security Acceptance Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Klett v. Security Acceptance Co., 242 P.2d 873, 38 Cal. 2d 770, 1952 Cal. LEXIS 222 (Cal. 1952).

Opinions

SCHAUER, J.

Plaintiff appeals from a judgment, entered pursuant to a jury verdict for defendants, in this action for the recovery of usurious interest and penalties and for the conversion of certain furniture. We have concluded that no prejudicial error or miscarriage of justice is shown and that, in accord with the mandate of section 4½ of article VI of the state Constitution, the judgment should be affirmed. Because, however, there was error in instructing the jury, it is necessary to quote, or to epitomize in some detail, a substantial amount of the evidence to show that the error was not prejudicial.

Some of the testimony of plaintiff, such as that in reference to the circumstances of his meeting Mr. Parker and the events immediately preceding his dealings with defendants, scarcely seems material to either cause of action but since plaintiff evidently thought that these matters were important and the jury heard them from plaintiff’s lips, mention of them is made. The jury may have felt that the evidence threw some light on plaintiff’s circumstances, his business methods, and the nature of his dealings with defendants.

[774]*774 The Usury Cause of Action

Plaintiff, in November, 1945, was a furniture salesman employed by the Standard Furniture Company in Sacramento ; he decided that he wished to go into the furniture business on his own account. He had met a Mr. Parker, “the first time the day I came from Stockton to the Sacramento Alcoholics Anonymous Club, and we became friends through our work together, and in that philosophy we follow in Alcoholics Anonymous.” Mr. Parker “used to come to the store” where plaintiff was employed; further, according to plaintiff’s testimony, Mr. Parker said “he would like to go into the furniture business with me here. This conversation possibly went on for two or three months.” Plaintiff and Mr. Parker then, on November 13, 1945, orally agreed to form a partnership and on that date plaintiff left his employment with the Standard Furniture Company. Plaintiff testified, “I told Mr. Parker that I was unable to go into business as far as finances were concerned ... I said, ‘I will consider going in business with you if you will put up the money against my experience At that time he said he would arrange for twenty five hundred dollars, and not very long after he would have twenty five hundred dollars more. I said, 1 It would be useless to go in for less than five thousand dollars at this time. ’ ” On November 29, 1945, Mr. Parker “put up one thousand dollars” and on December 4, five hundred dollars. Parker advanced no more money. In the meantime, plaintiff testified, he expected a Dr. Leiser to purchase a storeroom and rent it to plaintiff; on the strength of his expectations of getting a location and the capital which Mr. Parker had promised, plaintiff made buying trips to San Francisco and Los Angeles and purchased several thousand dollars worth of furniture; he also purchased a used automobile.

Plaintiff testified, “there wasn’t any use in trying to establish a credit. ... I told the manufacturers we would pay for this merchandise when it was delivered, or before it was delivered ... I was to notify them for future delivery.” After the first $1,000 was advanced by Parker, plaintiff paid for some of the furniture he had ordered, paid $150 for a sales tax bond, and paid for the used automobile.

Plaintiff then discovered that Dr. Leiser had not purchased the building which he (plaintiff) had expected Dr. Leiser to purchase and lease to the new partnership, and, having no storeroom, plaintiff caused the furniture he had purchased [775]*775to be placed in storage with Western Van & Storage Company. He then noticed (about December 2, 1945) that a building near the one which he had expected Dr. Leiser to purchase appeared to be empty; plaintiff contacted the owner, Avho at first was not interested in plaintiff as a tenant; however, although the OAA'ner would not enter into a lease he finally agreed to permit the new partnership to rent the building on a month to month basis on condition, suggested by plaintiff, that the latter “would give his son a position.” Upon this agreement plaintiff caused the stored furniture to be moved into the rented building on or about December 4 or 5. Mr. Parker put up the $500 above mentioned on December 4 and this sum went for “payment of rent and telephone deposits, gas and electricity deposits, and the general conduct of the business, and repairs. We had to put a floor in our store.”

Plaintiff repeatedly asked Mr. Parker for more money but Mr. Parker said it was not aA'ailable. On December 4, 1945, at plaintiff’s request, defendant Kenneth Forrest, vice-president of defendant finance company, met plaintiff at the latter’s home. Plaintiff, while an employe of Standard, had seen Mr. Forrest in the Standard store. Concerning their meeting on December 4, plaintiff testified, “I told him . . . that I was having difficulty and that difficulty was in getting enough capital to start this business. And I told him that Raymond Parker and I had agreed to go in business; and I told him it didn’t look like I was going to get very far on this new store without some financial assistance.

“I asked him if his company would be interested in any Avay in helping me finance this business. . . . We discussed furniture contracts, and the sale of furniture. And I told him that if he would help me at this time, in this way of financing or flooring,1 that I AArould be able to give him a good deal of our sales contract business.2 . . . And we dwelled a great deal on the plan we had been using [ ?] If he decided to do so, how Ave would sell our furniture contracts to him and his [776]*776firm . . . And before he left my home he told me that he would go along with us after knowing the structure that we had at this time to the extent of five thousand dollars; and that I would have to floor, or finance with them only the major pieces of furniture. The smaller items he would not be interested in because it would be hard to keep track of. . . . He said ‘I will go along to five thousand dollars worth of flooring or financing.’ ”

Plaintiff and Kenneth Forrest arranged a meeting on December 5 with Kenneth’s father, president of defendant finance company, and plaintiff’s partner, Parker. At this meeting, plaintiff testified, the elder Mr. Forrest “told me that they would put 90 per cent into these purchases and that we would pay one per cent a month on the flooring, and that this merchandise would be paid off individually from these trust receipts3 that I signed later as we sold the merchandise and delivered it. . . . If the merchandise was on the floor for a period of thirty days we were to pay him one per cent a month for that privilege of having that, or whatever you want to call it, that flooring; but had the merchandise been sold before that time—for example, if merchandise would come in on the first of the month, and we sold it on the fifth of the month, we were also instructed that we were to pay one per cent at that time.”

It is apparent from plaintiff’s testimony as above quoted that he was asking for, and received, something more than a mere loan of money or credit for interest. He admitted that he had no credit and that it would be useless for him to try to establish credit. He was asking the defendants to finance his business; to do almost the very thing, short of becoming a partner, which Parker had agreed to do but had failed to do.

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Bluebook (online)
242 P.2d 873, 38 Cal. 2d 770, 1952 Cal. LEXIS 222, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/klett-v-security-acceptance-co-cal-1952.