Orchid Shoppe, Inc. v. Sherwood Shoe Co.

1936 OK 715, 63 P.2d 739, 178 Okla. 177, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 528
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedNovember 10, 1936
DocketNo. 26771.
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 1936 OK 715 (Orchid Shoppe, Inc. v. Sherwood Shoe Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Orchid Shoppe, Inc. v. Sherwood Shoe Co., 1936 OK 715, 63 P.2d 739, 178 Okla. 177, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 528 (Okla. 1936).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

This action was commenced in the district court of Tillman county, Okla., by the Sherwood Shoe Company, a corporation, plaintiff, against the Orchid Shoppe, Inc., a corporation, defendant, and is a suit on account, for goods, wares and merchandise sold and delivered by the plaintiff to the defendant.

Petition was .filed on the 13th day of November, 1934, and attached to the petition and made a part thereof is as itemized, verified statement of the account sued upon. The petition alleges the sale and delivery of cerr tain goods, wares, and merchandise from the plaintiff to the defendant; specifically alleges the correctness of said account, and prays judgment for the sum of $263.03, with interest thereon at the rate of 6 per cent, per annum from June 1, 1934, and the costs of the action. The petition shows that the goods were sold and delivered 'between the 6th day of March, 1934, and the 23rd day of April, 1934.

The defendant filed motion to quash summons, motion to make the petition more definite and certain, and demurrer to the petition, all of which were overruled by the trial court, and on the 25th day of April, 1935, filed an unverified general denial to the plaintiff’s petition. On May 14, 1935, p’aintiff filed motion for judgment on the pleadings. On the same day the cause came on for trial, both parties being present by their attorneys, and announced ready for trial, and upon consideration of the plaintiff’s motion for judgment on the pleadings, same was by the court sustained, and judgment rendered for the plaintiff as prayed for.

On May 15', 1935, defendant filed its motion for new trial, which was on the 17th day of May, 1935, by the court overruled, the defendant saving its exceptions to the rulings, order and judgment of the court, and brings- the case here for review. The defendant below is the plaintiff in error herein, .and the-plaintiff in the trial court is the defendant in error herein.

The plaintiff in error set out four assignments of error, all of which may be considered in one general proposition set forth in brief of plaintiff in error, as follows:

“The trial court committed error in sustaining plaintiff’s motion for judgment on. the pleadings, on plaintiff’s verified petition, an unverified general denial of defendant being on file, without first striking said general denial and without the introduction of any testimony to sustain its, plaintiff’s, petition.”

Disposing of the one general proposition as set forth by plaintiff in error, as above quoted, disposes of -every issue before this court. As we view it, the -parties have brought themselves squarely within the purview of section 220, O. S. 1931, which is as follows:

“In all actions, allegations of the execution of written instruments and indorse-ments thereon, of the existence of a corporation or partnership, or of any appointment of authority, or the correctness of any account duly verified by the affidavit of the party, his agent or attorney, shall be taken as true unless the denial of the same be verified by the affidavit of the party, his agent or attorney.”

This section of the statutes is controlling, and is mandatory upon this court. The plaintiff has pleaded an itemized, verified statement of account, and has specifically alleged in its petition the correctness thereof. To this petition the defendant denied gencral'y the allegations of the petition, which general denial was not verified by the affidavit of the party, his agent or attorney. Not having denied under oath the correctness of the account, same is admitted.

The question then arises, Does an unverified, general denial raise any question to-be tried by the trial court, where the only matter presented in plaintiff’s petition was the sale and delivery of merchandise and the nonpayment of said account.

Plaintiff in error insists that even though the unverified general denial admits the correctness of the account sued on, yet it is sufficient to put in issue the question of sale and delivery of the goods, wares, and merchandise from the plaintiff to the defendant, 'and therefore the trial court committed error in sustaining the motion for judgment on the pleadings; there being a question of fact to be tried by the trial court, that of sale and delivery. Plaintiff in error cites in support of its contention the following cases, to wit: Doughty v. Funk, 24 Okla. 312, 103 P. 634, and Hastings v. Hugo Nat. Bank, 81 Okla. 189, 197 P. 457.

In each of the cases cited by plaintiff in *179 error, supra, wore questions other than the execution of the instruments suecl on, which questions were put in issue by the unverified, general denials. In the case of Doughty v. Funk, supra, this court said:

“The copy of the note, filed as an exhibit to the petition, shows that it was specially indorsed by the payee to the Union Trust Company. Suit thereon is brought by plaintiff as receiver of that company. Nothing appears by wiiy of indorsement or otherwise to indicate the ownership of plaintiff therein, or that, the same passed under his receivership. He alleges that ‘he is the owner and holder of said promissory note as receiver.’ This is denied in the answer. In an action on an instrument thus specially indorsed, brought by one other than the indorsee, who alleges that he is the owner thereof, an answer which alleges that plaintiff is not the owner puts in issue his title, and that too without being verified as required by said section.”

In the above case this court cited the following cases from the Supreme Court of Kansas, as follows: Washington v. Hobart, 17 Kan. 275; Pattie v. Wilson, 25 Kan. 227; Walker v. Land Title & Trust Co., 59 Kan. 777.

These cases all support tlio theory announced in the case of Doughty v. Funk, supra, and the Supreme CourL of Kansas said in the case of Pattie v. Wilson, supra, as follows:

“The plaintiff claimed as assignee. .No written assignment was shown. The defendant denied generally and denied specifically plaintiff’s interest and title. It is true, the answer was not verified, but only certain allegations are admitted by failure to answer under oath. * * * The execution of the note and mortgage may be considered as admitted ; but an assignment of the claim not alleged to have been in writing, is not admitted.”

So in the case at bar. 'rhe failure of the defendant to deny under oath the itemized, verified account of plaintiff is equivalent to an admission of the correctness of the account.

The case of Hastings v. Hugo National Bank, supra, cited by the plaintiff in error, in addition to the question of the execution of the written instrument, raised an issue of fact, which was denied by the defendant’s unverified general and specific denial.. Tn passing upon this question, the court said:

“These allegations raised an issue of fact in addition to the question of the execution of the written instrument, and under the above authorities such issues of fact .are not required to ire denied under oath.”

This court has passed squarely upon the question raised by the plaintiff in error herein, in the case of Checotah Hardware Co. v. House, 169 Okla. 112, 35 P. (2d) 9(10.

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Bluebook (online)
1936 OK 715, 63 P.2d 739, 178 Okla. 177, 1936 Okla. LEXIS 528, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/orchid-shoppe-inc-v-sherwood-shoe-co-okla-1936.