Maney v. Dugger

1928 OK 738, 280 P. 790, 138 Okla. 256, 1928 Okla. LEXIS 965
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedDecember 18, 1928
Docket17855
StatusPublished

This text of 1928 OK 738 (Maney v. Dugger) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Maney v. Dugger, 1928 OK 738, 280 P. 790, 138 Okla. 256, 1928 Okla. LEXIS 965 (Okla. 1928).

Opinions

LEACH, C.

This is an appeal by J. W. Maney and others, who were defendants in the trial court, from a judgment rendered against them in the district court of Oklahoma county in favor of H. A. Dugger, who *257 was plaintiff! below. The parties will be referred to herein as they appeared in the trial court.

Plaintiff’s petition, upon which the cause was tried, stated, in substance, that: On September 1, 1921, plaintiff was employed by defendants as a subcontractor on sections O and D, Oklahoma PAP No. 39, Carter county, in the construction of a gravel surfaced highway; that plaintiff, as such subcontractor, employed men and teams to aid in the construction of said road; that defendants agreed to pay plaintiff for the labor of the men and teams so employed, and for materials furnished; that the terms and conditions of payment are set forth in a contract dated September 1, 1921, and supplemental agreements November 3, 1921, and July 12, 1922, as shown by copies attached to petition.

The September contract designated Maney Brothers & Company, the defendants, as the contractor, and Dugger as subcontractor, and recited that the contractor had previously entered into contracts with the state of Oklahoma for the construction of sections A, B, C, and D, of Oklahoma, PAP, 39. The subcontractor agreed, as recited in the contract, to furnish all materials, labor, and equipment necessary for the construction of the gravel surface of the roadbed of sections C and D at certain named unit prices, such material and performance of the work to be acceptable to the State Engineer, and in compliance with and subject to the conditions, plans, and specifications of the contract between the contractor and the state, and to accept engineer’s estimates as a basis on partial and final payments, such partial payments to the subcontractor to be made by the contractor out of and within five days after receipt of partial payments to him by the state. Contract further provided that the subcontractor should place on the work a sufficient amount of equipment and labor to perform the work at a degfée of progress satisfactory to the contractor and engineer, and that upon failure so to do, the contractor, upon five days’ notice, should have the right to place on the work such additional equipment and labor as he might deem necessary, the cost thereof to be paid by the subcontractor, and if he fail or refuse to pay such cost, the contractor may pay the same and deduct the amount from any money due the sub' contractor.

The supplemental agreements referred to did not materially change the general conditions of the contracts, and apparently were necessary by reason of a change in the contract by .the state and contractor, and by reason of relocation of gravel pits from which material was obtained.

Following the reference to the contract in the petition, it was further alleged that plaintiff commenced work for the defendants under the contract; that there is still due him for labor and material performed and furnished under the contract, as shown by estimates submitted from time to time by the engineer in charge and as shown by the financial statement furnished by defendant to plaintiff, the sum of $8,528.33; that the items going to make up the unpaid balance -upon said contract are as follows: (thereafter follows in paragraphs 4 to 14 of the petition the allegation that defendants claim to. have paid out various sums for labor, material, trucks and steam-roller hire, describing the items and amount, and charged the same to the account of the plaintiff or deducted them from the amount due plaintiff without authority from him, and that the same were not proper charges under the contract, and for which plaintiff was under no legal obligation to pay; that by reason thereof defendants were indebted to plaintiff in the sums stated). Paragraphs 15 and 16 of petition refer to two certain items or sums claimed to be due under the contract for gravel which sums were not allowed, or were deducted from the amount claimed to be due plaintiff.

Paragraphs 17 and 18 of the petition refer to certain items or sums held or deducted by defendants, which plaintiff alleges to be due him as a balance on estimates and for work and labor performed and material furnished as shown by the statement of account of defendants dated November 22, 1922. In paragraph 19, it is alleged that plaintiff has performed all the conditions precedent upon his part, but that defendants have neglected to perform their said contract in the particulars charged, by reason whereof they were indebted to plaintiff in the sum and amount as stated in paragraph 3 of the petition; and prayed judgment therefor.

Defendants filed their answer to plaintiff’s petition, wherein they generally denied plaintiff’s allegations, but admitted that plaintiff performed certain labor as a subcontractor of defendants pursuant to the terms and conditions of the contracts set out in plaintiff’s petition; further alleged that plaintiff failed, neglected, and refused to place and maintain upon the work a sufficient amount of equipment and labor to perform the work at a degree or progress satisfactory to the *258 defendants and the engineer in charge; that defendants served upon plaintiff written notice that, in the opinion of the contractor, the plaintiff was not maintaining on the work sufficient material and labor; that the progress of the work was unsatisfactory to defendants, and that they would, as provided by the contract, place such additional equipment and laborers on the work as they deemed neecssary, and that defendants furnished additional equipment and laborers upon said work after plaintiff failed and neglected to do so, that such additional equipment and laborers were necessary, proper, and essential, and that the amounts expended therefor by the defendants were reasonable, correct, and just.

As to paragraph 4 of plaintiff’s petition, defendants deny that they have any knowledge of the item referred to and the charge thereof against the account of plaintiff. As to paragraphs 5 to 14, inclusive, of plaintiff’s petition, and the items therein mentioned, defendants admit having paid out the amounts and sums as alleged by plaintiff, and stated that plaintiff was obligated to perform the labor, or furnish the material for which the amount was paid out by defendants, and that the charges were necessary, essential, reasonable, and authorized by the terms of the contract between the parties, and specifically denied' liability to plaintiff for the various amounts.

As to paragraph 15, defendants admit the execution of the supplemental agreement referred to therein, but specifically denied that defendants are liable for the extra haul and amount therein alleged to be due.

Defendants specifically denied the allegations of paragraphs 16 to 19 of plaintiff’s petition, and further denied that they were indebted to the plaintiff for labor and materials in the amount and sum as alleged by plaintiff, but admitted that they are indebted to plaintiff for labor and material performed and furnished under the contracts in the sum and amount of $2,486.88. as shown by a verified, attached, itemized statement of account of the labor performed and materials furnished by plaintiff and the sums and amounts thereby earned by plaintiff ; also the sum and amounts paid to and charged against plaintiff.

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

Related

Revel v. Pruitt
1914 OK 372 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1914)
Amis v. Maney
1928 OK 254 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1928)
Equa Oil Corporation v. Black
1926 OK 121 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1926)
First Nat. Bank of Ada v. Elam
1927 OK 216 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1927)
Keaton v. Taylor
1926 OK 49 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1926)
St. Louis S. F. R. R. Co. v. Bateman
1925 OK 791 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1925)
Wiebener v. Peoples
1914 OK 397 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1914)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1928 OK 738, 280 P. 790, 138 Okla. 256, 1928 Okla. LEXIS 965, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/maney-v-dugger-okla-1928.