Milwaukee County v. H. Neidner & Co.

263 N.W. 468, 220 Wis. 185, 1936 Wisc. LEXIS 234
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 4, 1936
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 263 N.W. 468 (Milwaukee County v. H. Neidner & Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Milwaukee County v. H. Neidner & Co., 263 N.W. 468, 220 Wis. 185, 1936 Wisc. LEXIS 234 (Wis. 1936).

Opinions

The following opinion was filed November 5, 1935 :

Fowler, J.

The appellant Schranz Company, hereinafter referred to as the appellant, contends that the court erred to its prejudice: (1) In permitting H. Neidner & Company to [192]*192amend its complaint at the close of the testimony; (2) in findirig that the tiling buckled and cracked because the waterproofing did not bind the tiling to the shower walls; (3) in finding that the want of a binding of the tiling to the walls was due to lack of workmanship ; (4) in assessing as damages cost of replacement not guaranteed by the construction contract; (5) in including in the damages awarded interest on the cost of replacement; (6) in entering judgment for the surety company against the Schranz Company; (7) in misapplying the doctrine of subrogation; (8) in refusing to receive testimony offered by the defendants; (9) in receiving evidence produced by the plaintiff; (10) in allowing judgment to the original defendants against the Schranz Company on payment of the judgment against them; (11) in not giving the interpleaded defendant a fair trial.

The appellant surety company contends that the court erred in awarding judgment against it because: (12) The action was not commenced within one year after completion of the work; (13) the surety was liable only in case the work did not stand up for one year; (14) the evidence conclusively shows that the buckling and cracking of the tile was caused by defective plans; (15) the plaintiff waived defects of workmanship and is estopped from claiming damages therefor; (16) no damages were proven.

(1) The claims here are that because faulty workmanship was not an issue under the pleadings between H. Neidner & Company and the appellant when the trial began, the defendant had not prepared for trial on that issue and had no opportunity to do so, and that this not being an issue when the trial began, the appellant has had no jury trial upon that issue, as was its right, and its consent to trial without a jury was only a consent to trial of such issues as existed at the time the consent was given. But that issue was raised by the amendment of the plaintiff’s complaint, which was served on the appel[193]*193lant and the appellant served and filed an answer to it over six weeks prior to the commencement of the trial. It thus had ample notice that this issue was involved and would be tried, and it had accepted the defense of the plaintiff’s cause of action. While the original cause of action stated did not raise the issue of defective workmanship in installing the waterproofing, the amended complaint did raise it, and the appellant by its answer to the amended complaint assumed the defense of that issue. It went to trial knowing that that issue would be raised by the plaintiff upon the trial and made no objection to H. Neidner & Company that it would not defend that issue because it was not raised by its cross complaint. The evidence upon that issue was not objected to by the appellant, except that it objected to the introduction of any evidence by the plaintiff a§ against it. The introduction of this evidence began early in the trial, and the witness who testified first early in his testimony testified as to how the asphalt was applied on the walls — that it was applied too cold and not evenly swabbed so that some portions of the wall had no asphalt at all upon them, and that the workman did not sufficiently “pat” or press the membrane into the asphalt upon the wall or the asphalt was so cold that the membrane did not penetrate into and stick onto the asphalt. The counsel of appellant cross-examined the witness and all other witnesses of the plaintiff. When the defense started, after plaintiff’s case was in, counsel examined the witnesses. Early in the defense counsel for the appellant went into the way in which the waterproofing was done, and attempted to show that it was done according to the plans and specifications and applied correctly. He also attempted to show that the waterproofing had no structural strength whatever and that the cause of the buckling of the tiling was that the concrete plaster between the waterproofing and the tile was too thick, and that asphalt is not adhesive enough to help support the tiling. [194]*194This was followed by testimony of other witnesses of like nature. The contention that the defense was not advised of the claim of the plaintiff that faulty workmanship caused the damage complained of and was prejudiced by the fact that the cross complaint originally served did not state the double aspect of the plaintiff’s claim, or by the fact that the court allowed amendment of it at close of the trial to allege the double aspect, is without merit. The amendment was in accordance with the proofs and in accordance with the claim of the plaintiff made by its amended complaint. Had H. Neid-ner & Company amended its cross complaint immediately upon service of the amended complaint, the appellant would have been in no different position or better position to defend. As to a jury trial, it waived a jury trial with full knowledge of the double aspect of the plaintiff’s amended complaint, accepted the challenge of the plaintiff by answering it and proceeding to conduct the defense without withdrawing its acceptance or tendering it back to H. Neidner & Company.

The appellant argues that it made no objection to being interpleaded because the only ground of interpleader laid was that the buckling of the walls resulted from a substitution of other waterproofing for “Minwax,” and that had the claim of defective workmanship been at first interposed it would have objected. To this it is sufficient to say that its objection would no doubt have been futile. The case was a proper one for interpleading because H. Neidner & Company on judgment going against it on the ground of improper workmanship of the appellant would have an action over against it. Sec. 260.19 (3), Stats. It will not be presumed that the court would have refused to interplead the appellant when the result of the refusal would have been two long trials where one would answer every purpose of the two.

(2), (3), (14) The trial judge in a written decision stated that the claim was made in defense that the plans and specifications for the installation of the tiling were defective, and [195]*195that installation in accordance with them caused the cracking and bulging, but that this question was comprised in the one as to defective installation of the waterproofing, and that he was “obliged to hold that the plans and specifications for installing the waterproofing were not a factor” in the collapse of the tiling, and that the real cause was the “workmanship and manner of the application of the asphaltic compound and fabric.” He states that this was “quite apparent to the eye of the layman” and was “strengthened to almost a certainty by the testimony of numerous experts who had investigated the existing walls and by exhibits” mentioned. The appellant claimed that it was no function of the waterproofing to bind the tiling to the walls, but there was ample evidence to support the trial judge’s conclusion that the lack of a bond between the waterproofing fabric and the walls was due “either to the first mopping of the asphaltic compound being at too low a temperature, or because of careless mopping, described best as ‘sloppy workmanship,’ or both.” It is apparent from his written decision that the trial judge gave careful consideration to the matter, and we cannot say that his conclusions of fact were not supported by the evidence.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
263 N.W. 468, 220 Wis. 185, 1936 Wisc. LEXIS 234, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/milwaukee-county-v-h-neidner-co-wis-1936.