Rowley v. Lake Area National Bank

976 S.W.2d 715, 1998 WL 67579
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 30, 1998
Docket01-96-00314-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by33 cases

This text of 976 S.W.2d 715 (Rowley v. Lake Area National Bank) 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
Rowley v. Lake Area National Bank, 976 S.W.2d 715, 1998 WL 67579 (Tex. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinion

OPINION

WILSON, Justice.

This is an appeal by the garnishors, Jack and Beverly Rowley (the Rowleys), from the trial court’s judgment granting the garnishee’s, Lake Area National Bank’s (LANB), motion for summary judgment and in refusing to grant the Rowleys’ motion for summary judgment. The Rowleys bring eight points of error. In points of error one, two, three, four, five, and six, the Rowleys attack each ground upon which LANB’s summary judgment could have been granted. Points of error seven and eight concern the discharge of another party and the Rowley’s motion for summary judgment. In addition, LANB brings two cross-points concerning the trial court’s failure to discharge LANB on its answer and the trial court’s refusal to award LANB its attorney’s fees. We reverse the judgment insofar as it denies LANB attorney’s fees, and remand to the trial court for consideration of the appropriate award of attorney’s fees. We affirm the judgment in all other respects.

Facts

In February of 1994, Parsley Custom Homes, Inc. submitted a proposal concerning the construction of a house for Mark E. Patterson and Cynthia L. Patterson (the Pattersons). The proposal was signed by Parsley Custom Homes, Inc., per John W. Parsley. The proposal was accepted by the Pattersons, and in May of 1994, the Patter-sons, John W. Parsley, 1 and LANB entered into a builder’s and mechanic’s lien contract (the Contract) concerning the construction of the home. In addition, the Pattersons executed a promissory note (the Note) payable to LANB for $72,051.00. Pursuant to the Contract and the Note, LANB established a special account for the Pattersons in which LANB would deposit advancements in accordance with the Note. Only the Pattersons were authorized to withdraw funds from the account. The Pattersons wrote checks on the account to Parsley Custom Homes, Inc. in payment for work done.

In 1990, in an unrelated suit, the Rowleys obtained a judgment against Parsley Homes, Inc., John W. Parsly, and Barbara Parsley. The Rowleys filed an abstract of judgment against John W. Parsley and Parsley Homes, Inc. in Montgomery and Harris counties. On August 18, 1994, the Rowleys filed an application of writ of garnishment on the Patter-sons’ account and served LANB the same day. The Pattersons were served with notice of the writ of garnishment on August 31, 1994. After being notified of the writ, LANB disbursed the remainder of the loan money under the Note to the Pattersons (in their name) on August 29, 1994 ($18,738.26), August 31, 1994 ($1,441.02), and September 26,1994 ($15,551.22).

Both LANB and the Pattersons answered the writ of garnishment. In LANB’s first amended answer, filed September 29, 1994, 2 LANB stated that it was served with the writ on August 18, 1994; it was not indebted to Parsley Homes, Inc., John W. Parsley, or Barbara Parsley; and it did not have any effects belonging to Parsley Homes, Inc., John W. Parsley, or Barbara Parsley. *718 LANB also stated it had reason to believe the Pattersons may have been indebted to John W. Parsley, or that the Pattersons may have effects belonging to Parsley Homes, Ine., John W. Parsley, or Barbara Parsley. LANB also claimed that through the Contract, it may have been indebted to John W. Parsley as contractor, but these funds were trust funds for the purpose of building a home and were exempt from garnishment. The Pattersons, in separate answers to the writ of garnishment, alleged that they were served with the writ on August 31,1994; that they were not indebted to John W. Parsley, Barbara Parsley, or Parsley Homes, Inc; and that they were not in possession of any effects belonging to John W. Parsley, Barbara Parsley, or Parsley Homes, Ine. The Pattersons additionally stated that they were indebted to Parsley Custom Homes, Inc., and that the funds in the LANB account were trust funds to be paid for work done on the construction of their home.

Both LANB and the Rowleys moved for summary judgment. The trial judge granted LANB’s motion, but denied its request for attorney’s fees, and denied the Rowleys’ motion. In its judgment, the trial court discharged LANB and the Pattersons from the writ of garnishment.

Standard of Review

When both parties move for summary judgment and one such motion is granted, but the other denied, an appellate court should determine all questions presented. Jones v. Strauss, 745 S.W.2d 898, 900 (Tex.1988); Phillips Natural Gas Co. v. Cardiff, 823 S.W.2d 314, 317 (Tex.App. — Houston [1st Dist.] 1992, writ denied). The appellate court may reverse the trial court’s judgment and render such judgment as the trial court should have rendered, including rendering judgment for the other movant. Jones, 745 S.W.2d at 900; Cardiff, 823 S.W.2d at 317.

In a motion for a summary judgment, the movant has the burden of showing there is no genuine issue of material fact and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Nixon v. Mr. Property Management Co., 690 S.W.2d 546, 548 (Tex.1985). If a defendant moves for judgment based on an affirmative defense, the defendant must conclusively establish each element of the affirmative defense as a matter of law. Centeq Realty, Inc. v. Siegler, 899 S.W.2d 195, 197 (Tex.1995); Fernandez v. Memorial Healthcare Sys., Inc., 896 S.W.2d 227, 230 (Tex. App. — Houston [1st Dist.] 1995, writ denied). In reviewing a summary judgment, we must accept as true evidence in favor of the non-movant, indulging every reasonable inference and resolving all doubts in the nonmovant’s favor. Randall’s Food Mkts., Inc. v. Johnson, 891 S.W.2d 640, 644 (Tex.1995); Marchal v. Webb, 859 S.W.2d 408, 412 (Tex. App. — Houston [1st Dist.] 1993, writ denied). We will affirm the summary judgment if any of the theories advanced in the motion are meritorious. Cincinnati Life Ins., Co. v. Cates, 927 S.W.2d 623, 625 (Tex.1996).

Was LANB Indebted to-John W. Parsley?

In point of error four, the Rowleys contend the trial court erred in granting LANB’s motion for summary judgment on the ground that LANB was not indebted to John W. Parsley. Garnishment is a statutory proceeding whereby the property, money, or credits of a debtor in the possession of another are applied to the payment of the debt. Bank One, Texas, N.A. v. Sunbelt Sav., F.S.B., 824 S.W.2d 557, 558 (Tex.1992); Baytown State Bank v. Nimmons, 904 S.W.2d 902, 905 (Tex.App. — Houston [1st Dist.] 1995, writ denied).

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Bluebook (online)
976 S.W.2d 715, 1998 WL 67579, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rowley-v-lake-area-national-bank-texapp-1998.