Paramount Petroleum Corp. v. Taylor Rental Center

712 S.W.2d 534, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 12565
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 3, 1986
DocketB14-85-484-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by81 cases

This text of 712 S.W.2d 534 (Paramount Petroleum Corp. v. Taylor Rental Center) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Paramount Petroleum Corp. v. Taylor Rental Center, 712 S.W.2d 534, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 12565 (Tex. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

CORRECTED OPINION

CANNON, Justice.

Paramount Petroleum Corporation (“Petroleum”), appellant, appeals a judgment rendered in favor of Taylor Rental Center (“Taylor”), appellee, on an equipment rental contract. Petroleum challenges the legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence and the trial court’s refusing to admit defendant’s exhibit number five. We find the evidence both legally and factually sufficient. We further find that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to admit exhibit number five as a sanction for Petroleum’s failure to produce it. We therefore affirm the trial court’s judgment.

Four different persons on four different occasions during June and July 1981 approached Taylor to rent pumps and sandblasting equipment for use on the M/V Courtney D, a seagoing vessel. Each time, Taylor released equipment for use on the Courtney D. A Captain Jackson made the first rental request. Before releasing the equipment, the Taylor representative obtained credit information from Captain Jackson. The representative called the telephone number Captain Jackson gave to him. A person who answered the telephone saying “Paramount” verified that Paramount had employed Captain Jackson and had authorized him to rent equipment on its behalf. The person also told the Taylor representative to send the invoices to Paramount at its Houston post office box.

The second rental request was made by a Captain Weld. Captain Weld presented his business card to Taylor. His business card bore the name “Paramount Steamship Company, Ltd.” (“Steamship”). Taylor’s invoices list only Steamship as debtor.

It is undisputed that the equipment was actually used on the Courtney D. It is also undisputed that the invoices pertaining to the four rentals were never paid. The issue in dispute is whether Petroleum was liable on those invoices.

Petroleum’s first two points of error challenge the legal and factual sufficiency *536 of the evidence to support the trial court’s judgment that Petroleum was liable for the rental charges. In deciding a “no evidence” point, which is a question of law, we consider only that evidence and the reasonable inferences therefrom which, viewed in its most favorable light, supports the jury finding; and, we must reject all evidence or reasonable inferences to the contrary. Glover v. Texas General Indemnity Company, 619 S.W.2d 400, 401 (Tex.1981). In determining questions of factual sufficiency, we consider and weigh all the evidence in the case. We set aside the verdict and remand the cause for new trial if we conclude that the evidence is too weak to support the finding or that the finding is so against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence as to be manifestly unjust. In re King’s Estate, 150 Tex. 662, 244 S.W.2d 660, 661 (1952); Precision Homes, Inc. v. Cooper, 671 S.W.2d 924, 929 (Tex.App. — Houston [14th Dist.] 1984, writ ref’d n.r.e.). Because we have found more than a mere scintilla of evidence in favor of the trial court’s judgment, and because we must weigh this evidence against the evidence suggesting a lack of privity between Petroleum and Taylor, we will discuss Petroleum’s first two points of error together.

This case was tried to the court without a jury, and no findings of fact or conclusions of law were filed or requested. Thus, the trial court’s judgment implies all necessary fact findings in support of the judgment. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company v. Jefferson Construction Company, 565 S.W.2d 916, 918 (Tex.1978); Popkowsi v. Gramza, 671 S.W.2d 915, 918 (Tex.App.— Houston [1st Dist.] 1984, no writ). Furthermore, the trial court’s judgment should be affirmed if it can be upheld on any legal theory supported by the evidence. Lassiter v. Bliss, 559 S.W.2d 353, 358 (Tex.1977); Popkowsi, supra, at 918.

The first theory justifying the trial court's judgment is the “single business enterprise” theory put forward in Allright Texas, Inc. v. Simons, 501 S.W.2d 145, 150 (Tex.Civ.App. — Houston [1st Dist.] 1973, writ ref’d n.r.e.) and Murphy Brothers Chevrolet Company, Inc. v. East Oakland Auto Auction, 437 S.W.2d 272, 275-76 (Tex.Civ.App. — El Paso 1969, writ ref'd n.r.e.). We discern from these cases that when corporations are not operated as separate entities but rather integrate their resources to achieve a common business purpose, each constituent corporation may be held liable for debts incurred in pursuit of that business purpose. Factors to be considered in determining whether the constituent corporations have not been maintained as separate entities include but are not limited to the following: common employees; common offices; centralized accounting; payment of wages by one corporation to another corporation’s employees; common business name; services rendered by the employees of one corporation on behalf of another corporation; undocumented transfers of funds between corporations; and unclear allocation of profits and losses between corporations. Allright, supra; Murphy Brothers, supra.

We find the present record contains evidence sufficient to justify an implied finding that Petroleum and Steamship operated as a single business enterprise. The same shareholder owned all of the stock in both companies. The two companies operated from the same Houston office. They used the same telephone number and the same post office box. Both companies paid funds to Captain Jackson for repair work on the Courtney D. The employees of both companies referred to both companies as “Paramount”. Petroleum transferred funds, with no ledger entries, to a checking account over which an employee of Steamship was signatory. The president of Steamship testified that assets of Petroleum were seized when the Courtney D was seized. All accounting for the two companies was performed at the Houston office by an employee paid by Petroleum. Finally, Petroleum failed to produce, in response to discovery requests, any corporate records of either corporation. This evidence demonstrates that the corporations were not operated as separate entities.

*537 The evidence also shows that the corporations shared the goal of restoring the Courtney D. Petroleum funded the bank account from which the restoration expenditures were paid. Petroleum’s employees performed the accounting for the restoration. Steamship’s employees performed the actual reconditioning work and hired subcontractors. We conclude that Petroleum and Steamship formed a single business enterprise. Therefore, we find the single business enterprise theory supported by the evidence.

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Bluebook (online)
712 S.W.2d 534, 1986 Tex. App. LEXIS 12565, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/paramount-petroleum-corp-v-taylor-rental-center-texapp-1986.