Martin v. Martin

196 So. 2d 26, 1967 Fla. App. LEXIS 4989
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedFebruary 24, 1967
DocketNo. 7052
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 196 So. 2d 26 (Martin v. Martin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Martin v. Martin, 196 So. 2d 26, 1967 Fla. App. LEXIS 4989 (Fla. Ct. App. 1967).

Opinion

PIERCE, Judge.

Appellant, who was plaintiff below, appeals the judgment entered against her in favor of appellee, as defendant below, upon a counterclaim filed in a law action.

Eva Rue Martin, as Executrix of the ■estate of her deceased husband, John M. .Martin, sued her former daughter-in-law, Betty Jo Martin, upon two promissory notes executed some two and a half years previously by Betty Jo jointly with her then husband, George L. Martin, from whom Betty Jo in the meantime had been divorced. The notes, both of which were in default, were for a total of almost $10,-000.00 principal plus 6% per annum interest, and were made payable to John M. Martin, then alive, father of George L. Shortly before suit was filed, Eva Rue had qualified as executrix of John M.’s estate, and immediately, in her representative capacity, brought suit against Betty Jo without joining Betty Jo’s former husband, George L., son of Eva Rue.

At the time she filed suit on the notes, Eva Rue filed a statutory attachment affidavit and attachment bond, and procured issuance of an attachment writ, upon the strength of which writ she procured the Sheriff to attach and seize a forty-five foot Chris Craft boat called “Emmy”, the property of Betty Jo. Suit was filed and the attachment issued on September 6, 1963, but on October 31, 1963, the writ of attachment was dissolved by order of the Circuit Judge and the boat restored to Betty Jo.

Most of the foregoing proceedings are apparent to this Court only through recitals or statements made by counsel or witnesses in subsequent proceedings in the Court below. Neither the attachment affidavit or attachment writ is included in the record filed here. Likewise the levy of the attachment writ upon the boat, the order dissolving the attachment writ, or any of the documents filed or proceedings had leading up to the dissolution hearing. We will have occasion to comment further on the unsatisfactory state of the record here and the loose procedural amenities observed in the Court below.

In an answer and counterclaim filed by Betty Jo on September 24, 1963, she denied any liability on the notes, alleging that they were executed only to evidence a separate debt of her then husband, George L., in connection with the pur[28]*28chase by George L. from his father, John M., of fifty shares of stock in a corporation known as Martin Plumbing and Heating, Inc., pursuant to an agreement between George L. and his father dated March 9, 1960, copy of which, setting forth in detail the terms of the transaction, was attached to her answer. Betty Jo averred she was no part or party to that deal, and the notes sued upon bore the same date, March 9, 1960, as the agreement for purchase of the stock between the Martins.

Betty Jo further, in her answer, set forth that she received no corporate stock or any other consideration for joining with her husband on the notes; that on June 7, 1963, in connection with the divorce proceeding between Betty Jo and her then husband George L., he agreed to pay her the sum of $7,500, $300 cash and $7,200 within ninety days therefrom, in full settlement of alimony, dower, inheritance, and child support for their two children, which said $7,200 deferred payment was secured by a “first lien” in favor of Betty Jo upon the Chris Craft boat “Emmy” then belonging to George L.; and in the event said $7,200 was not paid within said ninety days George L. would transfer title to the boat, free and clear, to Betty Jo; that said deferred payment had not been made by George L. within the said ninety days, whereupon the boat had been turned over to Betty Jo just a day or two before it was attached; and that said attachment was the result of a conspiracy between George L. and his mother Eva Rue to defeat ownership by Betty Jo of the boat and in effect to nullify the settlement agreement between her and George L., which she had entered into in good faith.

Betty Jo further averred that the statutory statements contained in Eva Rue’s attachment affidavit, to the effect that Betty Jo had concealed and transferred assets, etc., were false and were made by Eva Rue with malice toward Betty Jo, and that such “wrongful attachment” of the boat by Eva Rue had caused Betty Jo unnecessary expense and also “inconvenience, pain and humiliation.” Betty Jo claimed damages by counterclaim incorporated in her answer, based upon the foregoing facts. Eva Rue, by answer to the counterclaim, denied the essential aver-ments thereof.

The record filed here apparently does not contain all of the subsequent proceedings in the cause but it does show a short session of testimony taken on August 27, 1965, by Betty' Jo and her mother, and also certain transcribed motions, arguments and contentions of respective counsel on October 22, 1965, and February 7, 1966; all in connection with the purported claim for damages by Betty Jo in her counterclaim. But whether such constituted all the testimony taken and proceedings had in the cause between the filing of the answer and counterclaim on September 24, 1963 and the subsequent entry of “Final Judgment” on January 25, 1966, does not sufficiently appear from the record before us.

It does affirmatively appear, however, that certain evidence was before the Circuit Judge and considered by him which is not contained in the record here, some of which was offered and filed but not included in the record, and other of which was not even filed but were presented to and “considered” by the Judge. Examples of this are at least one sworn deposition previously taken and also the files in two previous Court cases in separate Courts. These are affirmatively shown by the transcribed testimony at one of the hearings. Also, during the proceedings on October 22, 1965, the transcript in one place shows: “[tjhereupon, testimony was taken which was not transcribed.”

The issues before the Court when testimony was begun were the allegations of the counterclaim and the reply thereto. This appears from the observation made by Betty Jo’s counsel that “the plaintiff’s action on the notes that are sued upon have been disposed of in the form of a summary judgment granted to the defend[29]*29ant counter-plaintiff [not otherwise shown in the record] and so far as I know all parts of this case have been disposed of with the exception of the counterclaim. I will be proceeding on that.” But throwing doubt upon the whole proceeding, and particularly the exact issues being tried is a comment by the trial Judge during one of the hearings: “The only thing I am hearing now is testimony as to the liability on the attachment bond filed in this proceeding. * * * I would like to restrict the testimony directly to those damages that have grown from the improper issuance of the writ of attachment.” This “understanding” of the Judge was somewhat at variance with the “understanding” of counsel because the attachment writ was not dissolved until thirty-five days after the counterclaim was filed. And there could have been no claim of “liability on the attachment bond” in the counterclaim because the writ of attachment at that time was still in full force and effect.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
196 So. 2d 26, 1967 Fla. App. LEXIS 4989, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/martin-v-martin-fladistctapp-1967.