Miller v. Watkins

653 P.2d 126, 200 Mont. 455, 1982 Mont. LEXIS 971
CourtMontana Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 30, 1982
Docket81-422
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 653 P.2d 126 (Miller v. Watkins) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Miller v. Watkins, 653 P.2d 126, 200 Mont. 455, 1982 Mont. LEXIS 971 (Mo. 1982).

Opinion

MR. JUSTICE WEBER

delivered the opinion of the Court.

Bob Miller, plaintiff and appellant, brought this action in the District Court of the Fourteenth Judicial District, Musselshell County, to recover damages for breach of contract. Bill Watkins, defendant and respondent, pled the affirmative defense of accord and satisfaction for all counts of Miller’s complaint. Watkins also filed a counterclaim aginst Miller for damages for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, malicious prosecution, and defamation. The District Court sitting without a jury found in favor of Watkins denying Miller relief on all counts except for a $1,500 payment due on one horse. The Court awarded Watkins actual damages on the breach of contract for $23,000; actual damages in conjunction with the malicious prosecution of $30,000; actual damages for libel and slander in the amount of $25,000; and punitive damages in the amount of $50,000. Miller appeals.

We affirm.

The following issues will be discussed:

(1) Was substantial credible evidence presented at trial to support the findings of fact and conclusions of law?

(2) Were the elements necessary to prove a malicious prosecution action present?

(3) Was evidence presented to support the damage awards?

Bill and LaVonne Watkins are husband and wife and jointly own and operate a public stable. Watkins handles all phases of the business concerning the horses, including the breeding, training, raising, racing and buying and selling of the horses. He owns several quality stallions which he keeps *458 as studs for breeding purposes and he is a member in good standing of the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA).

Miller owns and operates a ranch near Jordan, Montana, in Garfield County, and is engaged in the business of raising horses. Prior to 1969, Miller owned many horses which were registered with the AQHA. However, in 1969, Miller was suspended from the AQHA for life and lost the right to have his horses registered. In late 1968 or early 1969, prior to his suspension, Miller transferred ownership of all of his registered quarter horses to two of his relatives, Dr. Purdom and Dr. Shreeves of California, and entered into a partnership agreement with them as a part of the transfer.

Jackie Oakes, a/k/a/ Jackie Fleming, a/k/a Jackie Miller, who is currently known as Jackie Kerrick (Jackie Oakes), is a member of the AQHA and has not been suspended from membership therein. In 1972, Jackie Oakes and Miller became acquainted through various horse deals and soon thereafter entered into a partnership arrangement for buying and selling horses.

In 1972, Miller was experiencing difficulties with Drs. Purdom and Shreeves. He ended his partnership with the doctors and had the registration of all of the horses transferred to Jackie Oakes. It was at this time that Miller and Jackie Oakes entered into some type of a business arrangement regarding the ownership of the horses and their offspring, since Jackie Oakes could register horses with the AQHA. In 1971 or 1972, forty to fifty registered quarter horses were moved to Miller’s ranch near Jordan.

Prior to the year 1974, Jaqkie qommenqed residing with Miller, and the two parties held themselves out to the general public as man and wife, with each authorized to transact business for and on behalf of the other with regard to the horses. During the fall of 1974, Miller and Jackie took a trip to Watkins’ ranch. Miller introduced Jackie as his wife and partner indicating that Jackie had full authority to transact business regarding the horses owned jointly by her *459 self and Miller pursuant to her business relationship, as well as her personal relationship, with Miller. During that meeting, Watkins entered into a contract with Miller and Jackie, by which Watkins would breed the Miller-Oakes mares with his stallions. The colts born of that arrangement would be registered quarter horses and would be split equally between Watkins and Miller-Oakes. The contract was renewed annually for three years and Miller-Oakes brought mares to the Watkins ranch in 1975, 1976, and 1977.

On October 8, 1974, the Cloverleaf brand, which was owned by Miller or by the Cloverleaf Land and Livestock Company, a Montana corporation, of which Miller was either the sole or majority shareholder, was transferred to Jackie Oakes and recorded in the Montana Brand Office. After the brand had been transferred to Jackie Oakes, various colts and yearlings were branded with the Cloverleaf brand.

In the spring of 1975, pursuant to the breeding arrangement, twenty-one head of Miller-Oakes mares were delivered to Watkins’ ranch for the purpose of breeding. Several Miller-Oakes colts were either by the side of the mares at the time they were delivered or born at Watkins’ ranch. During the summer of 1975, all of the mares and all of the colts, with the exception of one which died at Watkins’ ranch, were returned to Miller and/or Jackie Oakes.

In the spring of 1976, a total of fourteen Miller-Oakes mares were delivered to Watkins’ ranch for the purpose of breeding. Some of the mares had colts by their side and some of the mares foaled during the summer of 1976. All of these colts were the result of the breeding of the 1975 season and were “partnership colts” pursuant to the agreement of the parties. Fifteen Breeder’s Certificates were issued by Watkins indicating that a total of fifteen colts had been born as a result of the 1975 breeding season.

All of the Miller-Oakes mares and all of the partnership colts were returned to Miller and/or Jackie Oakes, with the *460 exception of two of the partnership colts which were retained by Watkins as a distribution. One of these colts which was retained was the Wicked Felita colt.

In the spring of 1977, a total of thirty Miller-Oakes mares were delivered to Watkins’ ranch for breeding purposes. Once again, some of the mares had colts at their side and others foaled at Watkins’ ranch during the breeding season. During the summer of 1977, after having been bred, all of the mares with their colts (all colts being partnership colts) were returned to Miller’s ranch in Jordan.

The Miller-Oakes mares were not delivered to Watkins’ ranch during the spring of 1978, as Watkins refused to continue breeding the mares for two reasons. First, he was dissatisfied with the failure to divide the colt crops pursuant to the agreement, and secondly, Miller and Oakes had failed to take the necessary steps to register the colts, thereby breaching their portion of the contract and rendering the colts less valuable. Further, by 1978, the MillerOakes partnership had disintegrated. Jackie was no longer residing with Miller and evidently was not a part of his business arrangements. Once Jackie was no longer a part of Miller’s business, it was very doubtful that colts born from the breeding arrangements could ever be registered with the AQHA since Miller was suspended from that organization.

Aside from the dispute over the splitting of the partnership colts, Miller also claimed that Watkins had purchased several horses from Miller-Oakes, and that Miller had never been compensated for the horses.

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Bluebook (online)
653 P.2d 126, 200 Mont. 455, 1982 Mont. LEXIS 971, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/miller-v-watkins-mont-1982.