Matter of Coleman

66 N.E. 983, 174 N.Y. 373, 12 Bedell 373, 1903 N.Y. LEXIS 1342
CourtNew York Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 7, 1903
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 66 N.E. 983 (Matter of Coleman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Matter of Coleman, 66 N.E. 983, 174 N.Y. 373, 12 Bedell 373, 1903 N.Y. LEXIS 1342 (N.Y. 1903).

Opinion

Bartlett, J.

The petitioner prays for leave to issue an execution upon a judgment recovered by him against the Mutual Brewing Company, which is alleged to be a lien upon its real property in Queens county.

The various persons in interest are made parties to this pro *377 ceeding. The contestant having the most substantial interest is the grantee of the purchaser of the real estate of the Mutual Brewing Company at the receiver’s sale — the Karsh Brewing Company. The receiver, Duffy, while a party to this proceeding and appearing by attorney, makes no affidavit and furnishes no explanation as to the amount or condition of the trust funds in his hands, or why he has failed to account for a period, now, of nearly seven years.

The petitioner previously obtained an order of the Special Term allowing him to issue execution, but the Appellate Division set it aside on the ground that no notice had been given to the party who had acquired title under the receiver’s sale, with leave to the petitioner to renew the motion upon proper notice, stating in its opinion as follows : “We do not now undertake to determine whether Denis Coleman’s judgment was a lien upon, the real property in question at the time of the sale by the receiver.” (66 App. Div. 37, 40.) This proceeding was instituted in pursuance of the leave so granted.

The Special Term denied the motion and the Appellate Division, with a divided court, held that the receiver’s sale of the real estate, as made, was not subject to the lien of the petitioner’s judgment.

The sole question presented by this appeal is as to whether the judgment of the petitioner, in view of the somewhat complicated legal proceedings, to which reference is hereafter made, was a lien on the real estate of the Mutual Brewing Company at the time of the receiver’s sale.

On the 13th day of June, 1893, the petitioner recovered a judgment against the Mutual Brewing Company in Albany county for $19,456.96, which was on the same day docketed in said county and the county of Queens. About a week later, on the 19th day of June, 1893, an action in the Supreme Court of Queens county was instituted by one Halpin, a stockholder and officer of the Mutual Brewing. Company, against that company, certain of its directors and others, including the petitioner. The complaint alleged, among other things, *378 that the judgment in favor of the petitioner was obtained through the wrongful and fraudulent acts of the defendant directors of the corporation, and asked that it be vacated and set aside.

The petitioner appeared and answered in that action. The case was tried and judgment entered therein, July 16th, 1895, which adjudged, among other things, that the said judgment was invalid and void, and “ is hereby vacated and set aside, and that the clerk of Albany County be and he is hereby directed to mark said judgment vacated, set aside and canceled of record.”

Shortly thereafter, and on the 21st of August, 1895, this petitioner procured an order, in substance, that all proceedings for carrying into effect that part of the judgment entered in the Halpin suit, which directed the vacating, setting aside and canceling of record the judgment in question be stayed pending the appeal which had been taken to the General Term, and the clerk of Albany county was restrained and enjoined from canceling of record and from marking as vacated or set aside said-judgment pending said appeal and until the determination thereof. At the time this order was made, the dockets of the judgment in Albany and Queens counties had not been marked vacated, set aside or canceled of record, nor have they ever been so marked.

The appeal from the judgment in the Halpin suit was not decided by the Appellate Division until between two and three years later, on the 26th day of January, 1898. The Appellate Division struck out from the judgment of the trial court the entire provision in regard to the judgment in question and inserted in place thereof the following, being subdivision Till: That- the agreement entered into between the defendant, The Mutual Brewing Company and Denis Coleman on the 25th day of- March, 1893, and the note for the sum of $19,300.00, dated May 1st, 1893, given in pursuance thereof, are both and each invalid and void; but as there has been delivered under said agreement hogsheads, harness and trucks of the maximum value, as found by the trial *379 court, of $5,175.00, the judgment entered upon said note in favor of the defendant, Denis Coleman, against The Mutual Brewing Company, on the 13th day of June, 1893, for the sum of $19,456.96, with the clerk of Albany county, be and the same is hereby reduced to the sum of $5,175.00, and the clerk of Albany county be and he is hereby directed to reduce said judgment to such sum and correct the record thereof accordingly, and said judgment as so reduced be and the same is hereby permitted to stand as a valid judgment against The Mutual Brewing Company for such amount.”

After this appeal had been taken by the petitioner from the Halpin judgment, and after the Special Term had permitted the dockets of said judgment to stand pending the determination of the appeal, and on the 21st day of December, 1895, an action by the People was instituted against the Mutual Brewing Company for its dissolution on the ground of insolvency, wherein an order was issued on the same day appointing one Duffy as temporary receiver. This order contained the usual provisions, among others, restraining judgment creditors from issuing executions.

On May 16tli, 1896, a final judgment was entered dissolving the corporation and appointing as permanent receiver Duffy the temporary receiver. This final judgment contained a clause stating certain liens subject to which the real estate and other property should be sold by the receiver. These liens were a mortgage for fifty thousand dollars held by one Marshall; also another mortgage upon the real estate for the sum of $28,753.83; also a chattel mortgage and two judgments, described in detail, as liens upon the personal property, executions having been levied.

On June 22nd, 1896, the receiver’s sale took place, subject to a notice of sale then read to the bidders assembled. This notice, except the description of the property to be sold, was, in substance, as follows: That in pursuance of the judgment dissolving the Mutual Brewing Company, the appointment of a permanent receiver thereof and directing that all the property and assets of the company be sold as therein pro *380 vided, the receiver would sell at public auction, on the day mentioned all the. property and assets of the Mutual Brewing Company and of Edward Duffy, as receiver of that company appointed in the action of Paul Halpin against the Mutual Brewing Company.'

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93 N.E.2d 160 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1950)
Markus v. Chicago Title & Trust Co.
27 N.E.2d 463 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1940)
Coleman v. McClenahan
149 A.D. 299 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1912)
de Lima Mayer v. Burr
133 A.D. 604 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1909)
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82 N.E. 184 (New York Court of Appeals, 1907)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
66 N.E. 983, 174 N.Y. 373, 12 Bedell 373, 1903 N.Y. LEXIS 1342, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/matter-of-coleman-ny-1903.