Nashville Union Stockyards, Inc. v. Grissim

13 Tenn. App. 115, 1930 Tenn. App. LEXIS 128
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedOctober 4, 1930
StatusPublished
Cited by23 cases

This text of 13 Tenn. App. 115 (Nashville Union Stockyards, Inc. v. Grissim) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Nashville Union Stockyards, Inc. v. Grissim, 13 Tenn. App. 115, 1930 Tenn. App. LEXIS 128 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1930).

Opinion

*117 CROWNOVER, J.

This is now a suit by the defendant, Grissim, against the Stockyards corporation to recover damages for the wrongful suing out of an injunction. Damages in excess of the amount of the bond were sought on account of malice and want of probable cause in suing out the injunction. And a jury was demanded under section 6259 of Shannon’s Code.'

The complainant Stockyards Corporation filed a bill in the Chancery Court of Davidson County against W. H. Grissim, enjoining him from entering its stockyards and premises for the purpose of conducting his business as a commission merchant, or for any purpose other than as shipper or consignee of livestock to complainant’s stockyard for sale, for reasons satisfactory to itself, but later complainant filed an amended bill in which it alleged that complainant was the absolute owner in fee of said stockyards and premises, from the use of which it derived its income, and that the defendant, Gris-sim:, had done acts which were hurtful and injurious to complainant’s business, and was using the privilege to enter its yards for the purpose of transacting his business and thereby obtained information which enabled him to go out and buy livestock which he shipped elsewhere and thus diverted business from complainant to others and prevented shipments of livestock to complainant’s yards that would have come to its yards, which caused complainant great loss, injury and damage.

A preliminary injunction was issued in accordance with the prayer of the original bill, upon the execution of a $500 bond.

The defendant, Grissim, answered that he had properly demeaned himself; was an agent and employee of J. D. Bolling & Co., licensed commission merchants, who had rented offices from complainant within said premises; that he had no intention of injuring complainants, and had a right to buy and sell and ship elsewhere; that complainant had a monopoly as there were no other stockyards in Nashville, and it had notified defendant that he must ship all of his stock through its stockyards although out of the way and line of shipment, or he must not enter its stockyards; that defendant had refused to comply because complainant was a corporation operating under a Federal statute which forbade unjust discrimination and it was therefore onerated with public service duties, and had no right to enjoin him from entering its premises and interfere with his business.

The cause was heard by the Chancellor on the original bill, as amended, the answer of the defendant, and exhibits, on a motion of the defendant to dissolve the injunction. The Chancellor sustained the motion, dissolved the injunction and dismissed the bill.

Complainant appealed to the Supreme Court. That court held that the injunction should have been dissolved, and that the bill was properly dismissed. The Chancellor’s decree was affirmed, and “the *118 cause remanded to the Chancery Court for a reference as to damages, if any, sustained by defendant as a result of suing out the injunction,” and the opinion was reported in 153 Tenn., 225, 280 S. W., 1015.

The order of the Supreme Court was amended to strike out the word “reference,” and the cause'was “remanded to the Chancery Court of Davidson County to the end that the damages, if any, to the defendant, W. IT. Grissim, Jr., be ascertained.”

After remand to the Chancery Court, on the trial for damages, a jury having been demanded, the defendant tendered the following issues of fact to be submitted to the jury:

“(1) What compensatory damages, if any, has the defendant sustained on a'ccount of the wrongful suing out of the injunction ?
“(2) What exemplary or vindictive damages, if any, should be adjudged in favor of the defendant in this cause because of the wrongful suing out of the injunction?”

But the court submitted issues to the jury, which, after hearing the evidence and the charge of the court, returned answers thereto as follows:

“1. Did the defendant suffer any damages by reason of the injunction sued out in this cause, because of the loss of salary and wages? A. Yes.
“2. Did the defendant suffer any damages by the suing out of the injunction in this cause, because of loss of profits and commissions? A. Yes.
3. Did the defendant suffer any other damages to his established business growing out of the suing out of the injunction in this cause? A. Yes.
“4. Was the writ of injunction sued out in this ease with malice and without probable cause, and if so, is the defendant entitled to any punitive or exemplary damages therefor? A. Can’t agree.
“5. What would be a reasonable compensation for the defendant for such injuries sustained by him, if any, not exceeding the amount of five hundred ($500) dollars? A. .$500.
“6. Did W. II. Grissim, Jr., knowingly violate the injunction by the transaction of business at the stock yards property while the injunction was in effect? A. No.
“7. Pending the injunction, did or not the stock yards company, through its officers and agents, encourage the acts of Grissim done by him on said premises? A. Yes.”

The defendant excepted to the ruling of the court in submitting the fifth issue to the jury, and prayed an appeal to the Supreme Court, which was denied, and defendant excepted.

Defendant Grissim moved the court for a mistrial in this cause because of the failure of the jury to agree upon issue number four, *119 which, motion was overruled by the court, and a judgment for $500 was entered in favor of Grissim and against the complainant and its sureties on the injunction bond.

Motion for a new trial having been overruled, defendant Grissim has appealed to this court and assigned three errors, which are as follows:

"(1) The Court erred in charging the jury as follows:
“ ‘As this court has no jurisdiction to try a suit for un-liquidated damages to a person, property or character, except as above indicated, this right given the defendant to have his damages assessed in this cause must be confined to his right against the injunction bond, and hence the amount of the recovery must be limited to the amount of the bond, which is $500.’
“(2) The court erred in not granting a new trial because of the inability of the jury to agree upon its response to the fourth issue, it being- a material issue.
“(3) The court erred in charging the jury as follows:
“ ‘You may properly consider whether or not the complainant, in good faith, when it sought the advice of counsel before suing out the injunction in this cause, disclosed to counsel all material facts relating to the situation, and acted in pursuance of such advice, and this may be taken into consideration in your answer to issue number four, whether or not .the writ of injunction was sued out in this cause with malice, and without probable cause.’ ”

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Bluebook (online)
13 Tenn. App. 115, 1930 Tenn. App. LEXIS 128, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nashville-union-stockyards-inc-v-grissim-tennctapp-1930.