Rudolph Hardware Co. v. Price

145 N.W. 910, 164 Iowa 353
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedMarch 14, 1914
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 145 N.W. 910 (Rudolph Hardware Co. v. Price) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rudolph Hardware Co. v. Price, 145 N.W. 910, 164 Iowa 353 (iowa 1914).

Opinion

Preston, J.

The only evidence introduced was what plaintiff claims to be the statutes of Pennsylvania, and the certified copies of the proceedings of the court of common pleas of Allegheny county in the state of Pennsylvania, and the alleged judgment in favor of plaintiff and against defendants.

Defendants first moved for a directed verdict, which was overruled. The trial court then sustained plaintiff’s motion, and rendered judgment against defendants. Appellants contend: (1) There was no competent evidence introduced to show a judgment against the defendants, or that the alleged judgment sued on was a valid judgment. (2) There was no competent evidence that the entries introduced as Exhibit A would be given the faith and credit of a judgment in the state of Pennsylvania under the Constitution and laws of the United States, oh be accepted in the courts of Pennsylvania as evidence of a judgment, and that, even if admissible, the record does not show that there was a judgment either under the laws of Pennsylvania or of Iowa.

Appellee has not argued the question as to the admissibility of the books supposed to prove the laws of Pennsylvania, but says that the Pennsylvania laws are substantially the same as the laws of Iowa, and that, under our statutes, the record shows that there was a valid judgment.

1. Statutes : foreign laws: proof: presumption. I. To prove the laws of Pennsylvania, plaintiff offered in evidence Brightly’s Purdon’s Digest in two volumes. On the back of each volume appears the following: “Brightly’s Purdon’s Digest,” with the index letters and “1700-1883.” The title page is as follows: “A digest of the Laws of Pennsylvania, from the year one thousand seven hundred to the sixth day of July, one thousand eight hundred and eighty-three, originally compiled by John Purdon, Esq., eleventh edition revised with notes to the judicial decisions, by Frederick C. Brightly, Esq., author of ‘Pennsylvania Digest,’ ‘Federal Digest,’ etc. [355]*355Vol. I [II]. Philadelphia: Kay and Brother, Law Booksellers and Importers, 1885.”

To the offer defendants made the following objection: “Defendants object as- irrelevant, incompetent, and immaterial: First, there is no pleading of any law of the state of Pennsylvania; none having been pleaded the offer is immaterial; second, the book offered does not purport to have been published by authority, and no evidence making it competent has been offered, the publication being wholly unauthorized by statute, so far as the same appears from the book itself, and no evidence is offered to show this digest is received by the courts of Pennsylvania as the law of that state.” The objection was overruled.

Our statute (section 4651) provides: “Printed copies of the statute laws of this or any other of the United States, or of Congress, or of any foreign government, purporting or proved to have been published under the authority thereof, or proved to be commonly admitted as evidence of the existing laws in the courts of such state or government, shall be admitted in the courts of this state as presumptive evidence of such laws.”

These books do not purport to have been published under the authority of the state of Pennsylvania, and there was no proof that they had been so published, or that they were commonly admitted as evidence in the courts of that state, nor were the statutes of Pennsylvania authenticated in any other manner. It is clear they were not admissible in evidence. Goodwin v. Assurance Ass’n, 97 Iowa, 226.

Under these circumstances, the laws of Pennsylvania will be presumed to be the same as our own. The claim is that the defendants in this action were plaintiffs in the case in Pennsylvania, and that the judgment was rendered against them on a counterclaim.

[356]*3562. jddgmbnts: record evi- ' dence. [355]*355II. The exemplification of the record contains copies of [356]*356dockets and documents. Defendants interposed proper objections to this evidence. The two docket entries relied upon by plaintiff as the record showing a judgment will be set out in full. They are as follows:

Exhibit A.

Exemplification of the Record.

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Allegheny County — set.:

Among the records and proceedings of the court of common pleas No. 2, in and for county of Allegheny, and state of Pennsylvania, the following may be found as matter of file and record at No. 449, July term, 1905:

Appearance Docket Entry.

L. E. Lyon and M. F. Price, Copartners Doing Business under the Firm Name and Style of Lyon-Taylor Co. v. Rudolph Hardware Company, a Corporation. No. 449. May 18, 1905, summons in assumpsit to 1st Monday, June, 1905. Statement filed. Service of filing statement accepted June 1st, 1905, by deft, ’s atty. Served May 22nd, 1905, on W. T. Poellot, one of the partners of defendant Co. June 13th, 1905, affidavit of defense filed. August 28th, 1905, rule on deft, for judgment for want of sufficient affidavit of defense; reasons filed. Eo die, service of rule accepted by deft, ’s atty. September 8th, 1905, on argument list and rule discharged. September 19, 1905, plea and praecipe for issue filed. September 28, 1907, on motion the within supplemental affidavit of defense is ordered filed. Sept. 30, 1907, proof of service of notice of filing supplemental afft. of defense filed. February 13, 1908, on trial list and jury sworn. Eo die, verdict in favor of defendant and certify a balance in its favor for three hundred ninety-seven and 26/100 ($397.26) dollars. August 24, 1908, shff.’s receipt for verdict fee filed and judgment entered on the verdict.

Judgment Docket Entries.

Defendant, Lyon-Taylor Co.; Plaintiff, Rudolph Hardware Co., a corporation; No. 449, term July, year 1905; date of judgment August 24, 1908; amount, $397.26.

[357]*357In addition are certified copies of certain documents which we do not deem it necessary to set out in full. These are a direction to the prothonotary by attorneys for plaintiff in that case to issue summons in assumpsit; statement of claims; praseipe ■ for appearance; notice to file affidavit of defense; summons to defendant in that case; affidavit of defense by the president of the hardware company; notice of rule for judgment; plea of the hardware company; supplemental affidavit of defense of the hardware company, and notice thereof; and a verdict as follows:

Verdict.

And now, to wit, February 13th, 1908, we the jurors empannelled in the above-entitled ease, find in favor of the. defendant, and certify a balance in its favor for $397.26.

............. Foreman.

Pittsburgh, August 24, 1908.

Allegheny County.

Also a receipt from the sheriff for verdict fee.

The question is whether this record shows a judgment against these defendants in the court of Pennsylvania. It is admitted by counsel for appellee that the judgment docket referred to in the record corresponds with our judgment docket and that the appearance docket referred to in the record corresponds with our combination docket, provided for in subdivision 6 of section 288 of the Code.

His contention is that, while subdivision 1 of section 288 requires the clerk to keep a book containing the entries of the.

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145 N.W. 910, 164 Iowa 353, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rudolph-hardware-co-v-price-iowa-1914.