Milliken & Farwell v. Taft Mercantile Co.

7 La. App. 150, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 554
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 9, 1927
DocketNo. 9,998
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 7 La. App. 150 (Milliken & Farwell v. Taft Mercantile Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Milliken & Farwell v. Taft Mercantile Co., 7 La. App. 150, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 554 (La. Ct. App. 1927).

Opinions

JONES, J.

This is a controversy between two seizing creditors as to priority of privilege on the proceeds of the sale of a certain judgment which the Taft Mercantile Company had secured against the L. A. Blouin Company.

To clarify the issue, it is necessary to outline briefly the preliminary steps leading up to the sale.

On January 29, 1921, Milliken & Farwell obtained judgment based on confession against the Taft Mercantile Company for four thousand six hundred eighty-three and 46-100 ($4683.46) dollars, with eight per cent interest from December 31, 1920, until paid.

On May 1, 1924, the Henry Lochte Company, Ltd., obtained a default judgment against the Taft Mercantile Company in the sum of two thousand one hundred and 23-100 ($2100.23) dollars, with legal interest from demand.

On April 30, 1924, the Taft Mercantile Company obtained judgment against the L. A. Blouin Co., Ltd., in the sum of one thousand nine hundred forty-four and 88-100 ($1944.88) dollars, with legal interest from November 16, 1918.

On June 16, 1924, by notarial act, the Lochte Company sold, with all legal warranties, to the Blouin Company for six hundred ($600.00) dollars, all its right, title and interest in the judgment which the Lochte Company had against the Taft Company.

On June 21, 1924, the Lochte Company, without notice to Taft Company, issued writ of fieri facias, seized and proceeded to advertise and sell at public auction, in satisfaction of its judgment, the judgment obtained by the Taft Company against the Blouin Company, which seems to have been the only asset of the Taft Company.

On July 10, 1924, before the sale of the judgment so seized by the sheriff could take place under the writ, execution was enjoined on various grounds by Attorney Robert J. Perkins, who had a privilege on the Blouin judgment under Act 124 of 1906 for his fee.

On July 10, 1924, Milliken & Farwell issued execution on their judgment against the Taft Company and seized the judgment exclusive of attorney’s fee, which the Taft Company had against the Blouin Company.

On July -25, 1924, the Blouin Company, as the assignee and subrogee of the Henry Lochte Company, presented to the judge a [152]*152petition of intervention and third opposition in the Milliken & Farwell • case, alleging its acquisition of the aforesaid judgment of Henry Lochte Company vs. Taft Mercantile Company, the issuance of the prior writ of fieri facias and seizure thereunder; the illegal issuance of the ex parte preliminary injunction and particularly the lien and privilege granted by law to the first seizing creditor. An ex parte order was granted by the court recognizing the superior lien and privilege of the L. A. Blouin Company, owner of the judgment obtained originally by Henry Lochte Company, and the sheriff of the Parish of St. Charles was , ordered to take notice of the said order and advise all bidders at the sale of the rights of the L. A. Blouin Company. The sheriff accepted service of the petition and order of court. This petition was filed in St. Charles parish on August 2, the day of the sale.

This judgment, exclusive of attorney’s fee, was duly advertised under Milliken & Farwell’s writ of sale for cash, and on August 2, 1924, was adjudicated to the Blouin Company, as the last and highest bidder, for the sum of one thousand five and 0-100 ($1005.00) dollars.

In making his return, the deputy stated that the purchase price had been credited under order of court against the judgment and claim which the Lochte Company had against the Blouin Company.

On December 27, 1924, L. C. Yial, the sheriff of St. Charles parish, filed a motion setting forth that the judgment had been adjudicated for cash, and that the L. A. Blouin Co., Ltd., had failed to comply with its bid by payment of said sum in cash as required, and praying the court to declare the sale to Blouin null and void and to order the property readvertised for sale under the writ issued in behalf of Milliken & Farwell still held by him. The judge ordered the Blouin Company to show cause why this motion should not be granted on January 9, 1925.

On January 3, 1925, Milliken & Farwell filed a similar motion, asking that the return on the writ be set aside as null and void and the sale thereunder vacated, the property readvertised and sold under their writ of fieri facias of July 10, 1924. On this motion the judge again ordered the Blouin Company to show cause on January 9.

On this date the Blouin Company filed an answer to each motion in which they claimed priority of privilege on the property sold because they had made seizure at least fifteen days before Milliken & Farwell.

Subsequently the court recognized and maintained the return of the deputy sheriff allowing the Blouin Company, as adjudicatee, to take credit on the claim of the Lochte Company (purchased by the Blouin Company) against the Taft Company, instead of paying the adjudicated price ($1005.00), and dismissed both rules. The court dismissed the rule of the sheriff but no appeal was taken.

From judgment against them Milliken & Farwell prosecute the present appeal.

One of the grounds urged by Perkins for his preliminary injunction was that no preliminary default had ever been taken in the Lochte case and, as the “whole record” in that case was offered in evidence by the attorney of Blouin & Company to disprove that and the other charges, it is presumed that the record contains the entire proceedings of the court.

This record áhows that the Lochte. suit was filed on March 28, 1921, and that the [153]*153corporation was served on March 29, 1921; that a judgment by default for full amount was rendered and signed on May 1, 1924.

Although this judgment orders that “the preliminary default entered herein be confirmed”, a close examination of the “whole record in the Lochte case”, which has been brought up in this record, fails to show that any motion for preliminary default was ever made or any preliminary default ever granted as required by Articles 311 and 544 of Code of Practice.

In the case of Adler, Goldman & Siegel vs. Wolff, 36 La. Ann. 169, Justice Bermudez on application for rehearing uses the following language:

“The statements in the briefs for a rehearing that the motion for a default was made and granted is not verified by the record. Where a motion is made for a default, it should be noted on the minutes of the court. It is true that there is found in the note of evidence mention of a verbal aplication for a default, but this is irregular and void. The law authorized the plaintiff, if the defendant do not appear, after the delay allowed, to take a judgment by default, which can be obtained by moving for it in court. It suffices that such judgment appear by a statement on the records of the court that the defendant has failed to appear. The law requires that all judgments, whether interlocutory, final or definitive, shall be correctly entered on the records, that is: the minutes of the court. The same rule must be observed in relation to all orders or mandates given by the court, as well as to all motions made by the parties to the suit. C. P. 310, 311, 533, 534, 538, 544; Caldwell vs. Glenn, 6 Rob. 9; Poultney’s Heirs vs. Cecil’s Executor, 8 N. S. 339; Begley vs. Morgan, 15 La. 164.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
7 La. App. 150, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 554, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/milliken-farwell-v-taft-mercantile-co-lactapp-1927.