Page v. Associated Couriers, Inc.

868 S.W.2d 138, 1993 Mo. App. LEXIS 2029, 1993 WL 540873
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 28, 1993
DocketNo. 63185
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 868 S.W.2d 138 (Page v. Associated Couriers, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Page v. Associated Couriers, Inc., 868 S.W.2d 138, 1993 Mo. App. LEXIS 2029, 1993 WL 540873 (Mo. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

CRANE, Presiding Judge.

Plaintiff, Mary Page, brought an action against her former husband, George Hasapis, American Dispatch Corporation (American) and Associated Couriers, Inc. (Associated) for breach of contract, imposition of a constructive trust, and a declaratory judgment. Page claimed that Hasapis owed her certain monies he received from the sale of Ameri[139]*139can to Associated, and that under a purported assignment American and Associated were obligated to pay those monies to her if Hasapis failed to do so. The trial court entered judgment in favor of defendants American and Associated after a bench trial on the two equitable counts, and subsequently entered summary judgment in favor of American and Associated on the remaining contract count.1 Page appeals from these judgments.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Hasapis and Page were married in 1974 and started American in 1978, using marital assets. Page was issued 8,000 shares of stock in American. Page filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in August, 1985.

While the dissolution ease was pending, on October 3, 1985, Associated entered into an agreement entitled Sale Contract (denominated “Agreement” by the trial court) with Hasapis and American. The Sale Contract provided that Associated would purchase all of American’s stock for $100,000, payable to Hasapis in forty-eight monthly installments. Associated further agreed to pay Hasapis $250,000, in exchange for Hasapis’ covenant not to compete for a four-year period. Of this amount, twenty thousand was to be paid at closing and the balance was to be paid in forty-eight monthly installments. The contract further provided:

All liabilities paid by the Company or on behalf of the Company or by any other individual or entity over and above Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000.00) shall be credited against said purchase price and compensation for the aforesaid restrictive covenant....

These liabilities were established at $375,-000.00. Accordingly, the total purchase price was established as follows:

Stock purchase: $100,000.00

Restrictive Covenant: $250,000.00

Gross purchase price: $350,000.00

Credit for liabilities in excess of $200,000 ($375,000 less $200,000): $175,000.00

Net adjusted purchase price: $175,000.00

The court found Associated paid Hasapis the sum of $175,000.00 under the Sale Contract in installments from October 3,1985 through February 2, 1989.

Prior to the execution of the Sale Contract, American’s directors and stockholders held a joint meeting at which the stockholders, including Hasapis and Page, redeemed their corporate stock, and Hasapis and Page resigned all corporate offices and positions. The stockholders and directors also unanimously executed a corporate resolution to approve and ratify the terms of the Sale Contract. Page was represented by counsel at the time she redeemed her stock in American and approved Associated’s stock purchase.

Also on October 3, 1985 Page and Hasapis executed a separate agreement, bearing the style of their dissolution case, which recited that “in addition to the purchase price for the stock of said corporation [Hasapis] will continue to be employed by the purchasers of said corporation as a consultant, all as more fully set forth in said Sale Contract.” This agreement further provided that the parties agreed that Page would “receive one-half of all net payments made to [Hasapis] as a consultant” and if Hasapis failed to pay, “this Agreement shall serve as an assignment, and [Page] shall have the right to demand payment directly from Associated Couriers, Inc., or its assign.” This agreement was denominated “Assignment” by the trial court and will be referred to hereafter as the Page-Hasapis agreement.

Although the Page-Hasapis agreement purported to assign an interest in consulting fees, the Sale Contract did not provide for Hasapis to be employed or to receive payments as a consultant. Associated never made any payments to Hasapis as a consultant.

The decree dissolving the parties’ marriage was entered in August, 1986. The dissolution court found that Page and Hasapis each [140]*140owned forty two percent of American stock. The court also found that Page and Hasapis had each received and had arranged with each other that they would continue to divide and take equal shares from the American sale proceeds.

Hasapis made payments to Page totalling $44,456.00 until March 11, 1987. In April, 1987 Page telephoned an Associated employee and requested Associated to pay her one-half of what was being paid to Hasapis. Associated refused. Associated made its last payment to Hasapis on February 2, 1989.

TRIAL COURT PROCEEDINGS

On January 31, 1989 Page filed a multi-count action in equity and law against the three defendants to recover one-half of the amounts Associated paid Hasapis. The constructive trust and declaratory judgment counts were tried to the court on March 12, 1992, the breach of contract count being reserved for jury trial. On April 2, 1992 the trial court entered its Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Decree on those counts. On the basis of the dissolution decree, the trial court found Hasapis obligated to pay Page one-half of the sale proceeds he received from Associated.

However, the trial court found-that defendants American and Associated had no liability to Page under any theory. It found no liability under the Sale Contract because the Sale Contract provided that Associated would make payments only to Hasapis. It found no liability under the Page-Hasapis agreement because American and Associated were not parties to the Page-Hasapis agreement and had no timely notice of this agreement. The court further found the Page-Hasapis agreement purported to assign consulting fees which had never been paid or incurred, it had not been filed with the court or served pursuant to §§ 452.350 or 432.030, and it was a partial assignment which plaintiff could not enforce against American or Associated. The trial court also found that Associated and American could not be liable to Page under the terms of the dissolution decree because they were not parties to that case and had no notice or opportunity to be heard. Subsequently, on April 13, 1992, American and Associated filed a motion for summary judgment on the remaining breach of contract count. After a hearing, the trial court granted summary judgment on June 10,1992 finding that the claim had been resolved by the April 2 order. Page appeals both judgments in favor of American and Associated.

APPEAL

For her sole Point Relied On, Page asserts that the trial court’s findings denying her the right to enforce the “Assignment” against American and Associated were against the weight of the evidence and erroneously declared and applied the law.

The point relied on does not comply with Rule 84.04(d) because it fails to state “wherein” and “why” the actions of the trial court were erroneous. Thummel v. King, 570 S.W.2d 679, 684-687 (Mo. banc 1978). If a point relied on fails to comply with Rule 84.04(d), nothing is preserved for review. Draper v. Aronowitz, 695 S.W.2d 923, 923-24 (Mo.App.1985).

Further, Page has failed to comply with Rule 81.12.

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Bluebook (online)
868 S.W.2d 138, 1993 Mo. App. LEXIS 2029, 1993 WL 540873, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/page-v-associated-couriers-inc-moctapp-1993.