Nelson Bennett Co. v. Twin Falls Land & Water Co.

92 P. 980, 13 Idaho 767, 1907 Ida. LEXIS 84
Idaho Supreme Court·Decided December 30, 1907·Published·Cited by 21 cases

Opinions

STEWART, J.

The respondent moves to dismiss the appeal herein npon the ground that notice of appeal was not served upon Ryberg & Carleson, defendants named in the complaint. Revised Statutes, section 4808, requires that a notice of appeal shall be served upon the “adverse party” or his attorney. If Ryberg & Carleson were adverse parties within the meaning of this statute, then the appeal should be dismissed, as it is admitted a notice of appeal was not served upon them.

“Adverse parties upon whom notice of appeal must be served are such parties as a reversal of judgment would affect.” (Aulbach v. Dahler, 4 Idaho, 522, 43 Pac. 192; Titiman v. Alamance Min. Co., 9 Idaho, 240, 74 Pac. 529.) The words “would affect,” as used in these two decisions, mean “adversely affect.” The statute intends that a notice of appeal should be served upon all parties who have an interest in conflict with a reversal of the judgment, or whose rights would be adversely affected by a reversal of such judgment. (Hayne on New Trial and Appeal, sec. 210; Foley v. Bullard, 97 Cal. 516, 32 Pac. 574; United States v. Crooks, 116 Cal. 43, 47 Pac. 870; Elliott v. Superior Court, 144 Cal. 501, 103 Am. St. Rep. 102, 77 Pac. 1109; 2 Spelling on New Trial and Appellate Practice, pp. 1143-1146; 1 Words and Phrases, p. 224; The Victorian, 24 Or. 121, 41 Am. St. Rep. 838, 32 Pac. 1040.) Where default is entered and the rights of the defendant cannot be prejudicially affected by further proceedings in the case, he is not entitled to any notice of such further proceedings. (23 Cyc. 754.)

Looking into the record for the purpose of determining the question as to whether or not it affirmatively appears that Ryberg & Carleson were adverse parties within the meaning of the statute, or would be prejudicially affected by a reversal, we find that Nelson Bennett Company commenced an [772] action against the Twin Falls Land and Water Company, a corporation, Alexander Toponee and Ryberg & Carleson, and Walter G. Filer and Martin B. DeLong, trustees, demanding judgment against the defendant Twin Falls Land and Water Company for $185,705.62, and interest and attorney fees and costs, and for a decree of court that plaintiff have a lien upon the canal of said defendant described in the complaint, and that said property may be sold under the decree of the court to satisfy said lien and judgment, and that all liens against said property be litigated and determined in this action; that Walter G. Filer and Martin B. DeLong, trustees, be decreed to have no right or claim in or to said property. The only allegations in this complaint as to the defendants Ryberg & Carleson are found in paragraph 20 of the complaint, as follows: £ ‘ That the defendants, Charles Ryberg and Gus Carleson, as Ryberg & Carleson, were likewise subcontractors under this plaintiff, and performed labor and furnished materials in the building of a certain portion of said canal; and as such they did heretofore and on September 24, 1904, file a lien with the county recorder of said Cassia county, Idaho, claiming the, sum of $5,856.33 due them for work, and plaintiff alleges in respect thereto that said work was performed within the distance and upon that portion of the canal covered by this plaintiff’s lien and described in this complaint, and is included herein, and that any amount which may be found due said Ryberg & Carleson upon their said lien is included in the amount due and owing this plaintiff, as principal contractor, and can and should be litigated and determined herein; that whatever amounts are found due and payable said Ryberg & Carleson should be satisfied out of the property included in and covered by this plaintiff’s lien; that plaintiff has paid to said defendants Ryberg & Carleson all amounts by it, the said plaintiff, received from the defendant Twin Falls Land & Water Company on account of and allowed for said work of Ryberg & Carleson under the contract of employment between said Ryberg & Carleson and this plaintiff; and whatever amount is found to be due upon the lien and claim of said Ryberg & [773] Carleson should be deducted from the amount herein found due plaintiff, and decreed and distributed to said Byberg & Carleson in this action.”

The Twin Falls Land and Water Company answered in this action and with reference to the allegations set forth against Byberg & Carleson, admitted that Byberg & Carleson were subcontractors under Nelson Bennett Company in the performance of certain work, but whether they were subcontractors under the work mentioned in the complaint and answer in this action, upon which the lien of Nelson Bennett Company was founded, they have no knowledge and therefore deny. They further admit that Byberg & Carleson filed a lien against the property and that they are now claiming and demanding payment of the sum of $5,856.33 from the defendants, alleging such amount is due from Nelson Bennett Company on account of work and labor performed, but as to the lien, they have no knowledge, neither do they know whether the plaintiff paid Byberg & Carleson, and therefore they deny every allegation in respect to Byberg & Carleson made by Nelson Bennett Company in its complaint.

Alexander Toponee filed a cross-complaint in this action but does not mention, in any way, the names of Byberg & Carleson. The cause was tried and the court made findings of fact and conclusions of law in which the only reference to Byberg & Carleson is found at folio 536 of the transcript, as follows: “Said Nelson Bennett Co. being an original contractor, and the said Alexander Toponee a subcontractor, and thereupon the hearing and trial of the above consolidated causes was commenced January 23rd, 1906, and had before the court without a jury, at which trial plaintiff Nelson Bennett Co. appeared by its attorneys, Marshall K. Snell, Bertha M. Snell and H. H. Henderson, and plaintiff Alexander Toponee appeared by his attorneys, Henderson & McMillan, and the defendants Byberg & Carleson failed to appear and were in default.”

It may be stated, however, in this connection, that there is on file a written appearance on the part of Byberg & Carle[774] son by their attorney, but that such written appearance is the only paper filed in said cause by said Ryberg & Carleson.

Again, at folio 589, in its twenty-third finding, the court finds: “The court finds that the defendants Ryberg & Carleson, subcontractors under said Nelson Bennett Co., failed to appear herein or to “prosecute their lien and are in default. ’ ’

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Nelson Bennett Co. v. Twin Falls Land & Water Co., 92 P. 980, 13 Idaho 767, 1907 Ida. LEXIS 84 (Idaho 1907).

92 P. 980 (Nelson Bennett Co. v. Twin Falls Land & Water Co.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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