Nash v. Burchard

49 N.W. 492, 87 Mich. 85, 1891 Mich. LEXIS 749
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 28, 1891
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 49 N.W. 492 (Nash v. Burchard) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Nash v. Burchard, 49 N.W. 492, 87 Mich. 85, 1891 Mich. LEXIS 749 (Mich. 1891).

Opinion

Ohamphh, C. J.

This case comes before us upom demurrer to the complainant's bill.

The complainant is Homer W. Nash, of the city of.' Detroit, and he files this bill of" complaint against the-defendants, the principal statements contained therein being as follows:

1. That prior to the year 1882, and up to June 23,. 1882, there had existed a firm known and called 0.. Burchard _& Co., which was engaged in the business of' making and vending men’s clothing in the city of Grand Bapids, which firm was composed of Mary E. Burchard and Frederick Lyon; that the firm of Burchard & Co. sold out the business and stock in trade to the firm of Lyon & Gray, composed of said Frederick Lyon and Louis M. Gray; that the assets of the firm of Burchard [88]*88& Co. at the time of the sale were as follows:. Stock of merchandise then on hand, claimed to have been inventoried at the sum of $7,317.46, and good and collectible accounts to the amount of $2,406.71, and cash then on hand, $114.04, — which stock, accounts, and cash on hand were sold by the firm of C. Burchard-& Go. to the firm of Lyon & Gray for the sum of $7,317.46, and a chattel mortgage upon the stock in trade was given by the firm of Lyon & Gray to Mary E. -Burchard for that sum.
2. That there was afterwards paid upon the indebtedness to Mary E. Burchard the sum of $1,317.46, leaving a balance due and secured by the chattel mortgage of $6,000; that afterwards, in the month, of March, 1884, the firm of Lyon & Gray became involved and unable to pay their debts, and made an assignment to Lyman D. Follett for the benefit of their creditors; that the assignee took possession of the stock, and caused it to be inventoried, with the fixtures in the store, which inventory made about the sum of $5,800; that within a few days thereafter Mary E. Burchard caused the stock of goods to be seized under and by virtue of her chattel mortgage, and caused the same to be sold thereunder at public auction in the city of Grand Bapids, which stock was sold for the sum of $2,600 to the complainant, Homer W. Nash.
3. That the said Lyon & Gray, in order to secure their indebtedness to their creditors, had given their notes and procured the indorsement of the same by the said Mary E. Burchard to the amount of $1,500, a part of which had been paid by the said Lyon & Gray, which left said indebtedness with her indorsement to the amount of about $900.
4. That, at the time of said sale by the firm of C. Burchard & Co. to Lyon & Gray, there were outstanding liabilities of C. Burchard & Co., for which Mary E, Burchard had given her individual notes, indorsed by Homer W. Nash, which were at that time unpaid.
5. That from the time, of said sale by 0. Burchard & Co. to Lyon & Gray, on or about the 23d of June, 1882, complainant had been acting as the friend, adviser, and assistant of the said Mary E. Burchard in her financial affairs, and at the time of the seizure of the said goods by the said Mary E. Burchard, under and by virtue of the chattel mortgage, it was amanged and agreed, by and between Mary E. Burchard and Homer W. Nash, that he [89]*89should attend the sale, and, unless the property should be sold to other bidders for something near its value, that he, Nash, should bid in the same in his own name, but for the said Mary E. Burchard, in satisfaction, so far as it should go, of her said mortgage; that under the said arrangement Nash attended the sale, and bid in the property in his own name, but for the use and benefit of said Mary E. Burchard.
6. That the said Mary E. Burchard, being anxious to obtain employment for her son Frederick, at the same time agreed with Nash that he should take charge of the said stock in trade and business, and continue the same for her benefit, and permit her said son to have charge of the business of manufacturing and selling, and the collecting of moneys, and to account to Nash therefor, and that Nash should make purchases of goods as they might -be needed for the purpose of keeping up the stock of goods, and making the same salable, until such time as the money due to the said Mary E. Burchard should be made out of the same; that Nash entered upon said business, took possession of the store and stock in trade and business, and put the said Frederick into the store to manage and care for the manufacture and sale of the goods, and to attend to collections, and continued the same in that way for about two months, when it was found that said Frederick was .inefficient and inattentive, and that the business was being neglected and injured; that thereupon Nash, with the consent of Mary E. Burchard, employed George R. Nash to enter into said' store, and take charge of the sales, and the money accruing from the sales and collections of the said business, and that thereupon said Frederick abandoned the same; that the business was continued until the latter part of December, 1884, when Nash caused said property to be advertised for sale at public auction, with a view of clos.ing up the said business, it having proved unsatisfactory and unprofitable.
7. That, after he had taken possession of the stock of goods under and by virtue of - said sale, one A. Origet, who was a creditor of the firm of Lyon & Gray to the amount of about $3,300, thereupon attached the stock in the hands of Nash, and, to avoid suit, seizure of goods, and stoppage of business, it was agreed between Nash and Mary E. Burchard that a compromise should be made, if possible, with the said Origet, and that Nash succeeded in [90]*90settling with him for the sum of about $1,860, for which Frederick Lyon gave his notes, payable to the order of Nash, and which he indorsed, and that it was at the same time- agreed between him and the said Mary E. Burchard that the said notes should be paid out of the proceeds of the said business.
8. That, after he had purchased the stock of goods at the sale under the chattel mortgage, he gave to the said Mary E. Burchard his bond, conditioned for the payment of the purchase price of the said goods, to wit, the sum of $2,600, in four years from the date thereof, which said bond was given in fact as security to the said Mary E. Burchard for the faithful discharge of his duties as agent of the said Mary E. Burchard in the carrying on and transacting of said business, and with the agreement that the moneys realized from the said business should be applied to the satisfaction of the said bond; that at the time of the giving of said bond Nash was not in anyway indebted to Mary E. Burchard, and the bond was not given for any indebtedness of his to her.
■ 9. That, immediately after the said George B. Nash entered upon the control of the business, he caused an inventory to be taken of the goods then on hand, and found, upon examination, that they consisted mainly of old goods, remnants, and stock that had been on hind in the store many years before the purchase by Lyon & Gray, and were unsalable, and comparatively worthless; that the stock then on hand, inventoried at the old cost price, amounted to the sum of $5,821.08, while it was, in truth and in fact, not worth in the market to exceed one-third of that sum.
10. That during the time that Homer W.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
49 N.W. 492, 87 Mich. 85, 1891 Mich. LEXIS 749, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nash-v-burchard-mich-1891.