Klimes v. Jones

7 Tenn. App. 583, 1928 Tenn. App. LEXIS 82
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedMay 11, 1928
StatusPublished

This text of 7 Tenn. App. 583 (Klimes v. Jones) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Klimes v. Jones, 7 Tenn. App. 583, 1928 Tenn. App. LEXIS 82 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1928).

Opinion

HELSKELL, J.

This is a replevin suit in which the complainant claims under two chattel mortgages executed by Percy Jones, one dated February 16, 1926, and the other dated March 9, 1926.

The defendant, The Farmers Exchange Bank, filed an answer and cross-bill, claiming under a chattel mortgage from Percy Jones, dated February 10, 1926. Jones answers both original and cross-bill, admits the execution of the three mortgages and says, with a few exceptions, the mortgages to complainant and that to secure defendant convey the same property. Jones is making no contest as to the mortgages, the property or the amount of his indebtedness to the respective partices. The case therefore, becomes a contest of priorities under the conflicting mortgages.

The mortgages of February 16th, and March 9th, were executed to George V. Klimes, trustee, to secure notes given by Jones to Bes-sire & Co., Incorporated, ‘for unpaid purchase money due on the *585 property described. The mortgage of February 10th was executed to Harris Parks, trustee, to secure the Farmers Exchange Bank of Union City $1500 borrowed money of which $1200 was paid to Bessire & Company as the cash payment on said property.

Harris Parks is now dead and Jones practically eliminated so far as any contest is concerned. It will simplify the consideration of the issues involved to refer to the trustee Klimes and Bessire & Company as complainants and the Farmers Exchange Bank as the defendant.

It is not disputed that on February 4, 1926, Percy Jones signed an order to Bessire & Company for the following goods f. o. b. factory:

1 — #30 Model “B” Middleby Marshall Oven, etc. '

1 — Champion Automatic Dough Brake.

1 — 2-Barrel Century Dough Mixer, etc.

1 — 3 Bbl. Century Flour Bin, Elevator & Sifter.

1 — Flueless Boiler.

1 — #30 Champion Bread Rack.

1 — #206 Steel Union Dough Trough,

for which he agreed to pay $3256.50; on arrival $1200, eleven monthly notes of $175 each and one note of $131.50.

The order blank contained two conditions, the first of which was stricken out when this order was signed by Jones, constituting the contract of sale. These provisions are:

“(1) If on ten or thirty days’ terms, it is agreed that, to secure you in the full payment of this order, the title, ownership, and possession does not pass from you, or your assigns to me (or us) and my (or our) assigns until the full amount due for this order has been fully paid and satisfied.
"(2) If extended payments are desired, the vendee hereby agrees to execute secured notes (together with regular contract covering payment), in accordance with the laws of the State; same to be approved by vendor at the time shipment is made, or a few days prior thereto, payments to be made as follows, all notes bearing legal rate of interest.”

The mortgage of February 10th to defendant embraced all of said articles in the order of February 4th, and in addition one moulder, one work bench, one wrapping machine, one lot of pans and tools, steam boxes, show cases and fixtures.

Under a somewhat more elaborate description the mortgage to complainants of February’ 16th embraced the same articles included in the order of February 4th, and the mortgage of March 9th included the moulder and a cake mixer, defendant does not claim the cake mixer and complainants do not claim the articles described in defendant’s mortgage over and above the order ex *586 cept the moulder. "With the exception then of the cake mixer and the work bench, wrapping machine, lot of pans, tools, steam-boxes, show cases and fixtures the mortgages of complainants and that of defendant, cover the same articles.

Defendant’s mortgage was recorded the day it was executed, February 10, 1926. Complainants’ mortgages were recorded March 9, 1926. ' ,

Complainants claim priority on three grounds:

(1) That the decription of the property in the mortgage to Harris Parks, trustee, is not sufficient to charge complainant with constructive notice, and that the mortgage is invalid for want of description.

(2) That at the time the mortgage to Harris Parks, trustee, was executed, Jones did not own the property conveyed by the mortgage.

(3) That on January 17, 1927, and before suit was brought, Farmers Exchange Bank agreed that the property might be sold and the proceeds of sale be first applied in payment of the indebtedness secured by the two mortgages to Klimes, trustee.

The defendant contends:

(1) That the description is good.

(2) That the title was in Jones on February 10th.

(3) That if not, the mortgage to defendant was valid as a mortgage of after-acquired property.

(4) That the agreement of defendant referred to in complainants’ third contention was made under a mistake of facts, being misled by complainant Klimes, was repudiated at once upon discovery of the mistake and therefore of no effect in the case.

(5) The prior registration of defendant’s mortgage.

The Chancellor held the description in defendant’s mortgage good as against the complainants. That defendant had priority as to all the contested articles except the oven and the moulder, basing these exceptions on the ground that by the contract the oven was ’ to be installed by complainants and therefore something was to be done by the seller before the title passed and that the moulder, according to the proof, was not purchased until after the mortgage of February 10th. From this decree both sides appealed and .assigned errors, each insisting on priority as to all the articles included in their respective mortgages.

We shall not attempt to follow the numerous assignments of error or the findings of fact by the Chancellor, but endeavor to state and dispose of the issues raised between the parties, taking them up in what we consider the order of importance.

*587 First, the complainants insist that Jones did not have title to the property embraced in the mortgage to defendant on February 10th. That the contract of February 4th involved unascertained goods, and before the goods were ascertained or appropriated to the contract the defendant’s mortgage was executed, and that at the time of the order of February 4th Jones agreed to give a mortgage on the goods to secure the purchase money to complainant’s and that besides complainants had never relinquished their right of possession to the goods until their mortgage of February 16th was executed.

The defendant insists that the property in the goods passed at the time of the order on February 4th because this must be taken as the intention of the parties under the Act of 1919, chapter 118, section 19, rule 1. Besides defendant contends that if this is not so, still a mortgage of after-acquired property is valid, and cites Judge v. Jones, 99 Tenn., 21, to support this proposition. Complainants do not deny the authority of Judge v.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
7 Tenn. App. 583, 1928 Tenn. App. LEXIS 82, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/klimes-v-jones-tennctapp-1928.