Searle v. Whipperman

79 Ind. 424
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 15, 1881
DocketNo. 8802
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 79 Ind. 424 (Searle v. Whipperman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Searle v. Whipperman, 79 Ind. 424 (Ind. 1881).

Opinion

Best, C.

— One William W. Hqney brought an action to-foreclose a mortgage against Nathan Ridenger and others, to-which proceeding he made the appellee Whipperman a party as the holder of a subsequent mortgage, and the appellant a party as the owner of the equity of redemption. Thereupon the appellee Whipperman filed a cross complaint to foreclose a mortgage upon the same premises made by Ridenger against him and others and against the appellant as the owner of the property, and to recover a personal judgment against him upon. [425]*425his assumption of the debt. Process was served, and subsequently, upon default, judgment of foreclosure and a personal judgment over, without relief, etc., were rendered against him. The appellant afterward brought this action to review that-judgment. The appellee Whipperman demurred to the complaint for want of facts, and the court sustained the demurrer. This ruling is assigned as error, and presents the only question in the record.

The ground upon which the appellant sought to review the judgment was, that the complaint of Whipperman did not state facts sufficient to authorize a personal judgment against him. The complaint was as follows:

“ Comes now Iienry Whipperman, one of the above named defendants, and, for answer by way of cross bill, says that on the 9th day of October, 1866, Nathan Ridenger, one of the defendants, by his promissory note, a copy of which is herewith filed, marked Exhibit ‘A/ and made a part of this complaint, promised to pay one Nancy Butt five hundred dollars ($500); that said Nancy Butt assigned said note to said Henry Whipperman ; that there is now due on said note and wholly unpaid the sum of seven hundred dollars; that a certain mortgage was given by said Ridenger to secure said note, a copy of which is herewith filed, marked Exhibit B/ and made a part of this complaint. The defendant further avers in his cross bill, that said Ridenger and wife sold the property described in the mortgage, above referred to, to Frank Searle, one of the above named defendants; that, in said sale to said Searle, said Searle expressly agreed with said Ridenger and wife in said sale and transfer to said Searle, that he, said Searle, would personally stand responsible to said Whipperman, and would pay said Whipperman said sum of five hundred dollars, a copy of which agreement and deed is herewith filed, marked Exhibit C/ and made a part of this cross bill and complaint. This defendant further avers that said Nancy Butt was at the time of signing the note to this plaintiff, and has been ever since, wholly insolvent. Wherefore,” etc.

[426]*426The judgment, as before stated, was taken by default, and -the sufficiency of this complaint was not tested by demurrer, nor was there a motion to modify the judgment or to set aside the default.

An appeal may be taken from a judgment rendered by default without first making a motion to set aside the' default. Cochnower v. Cochnower, 27 Ind. 253; Monroe v. Strader, 33 Ind. 111.

As a bill to review a judgment for error apparent of record is in the nature of an appeal, such bill will lie without a motion to set aside the default. Each is a proceeding to review a judgment, and any question that arises upon an appeal maybe reached by a bill to review, and any question that does not «arise upon an appeal can not be reached by proceedings to review. In this respect they are precisely alike. In neither ■can any question arise that depends upon a motion to set aside •a default or to modify the judgment, unless such motions were made. In this case no motion was made, either to set aside ■the default or to modify the judgment. Nor was the complaint tested by a demurrer. The omission to do so, however, did not waive the objection that the court had no jurisdiction ■of the subject-matter of the action, or that the complaint did not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. 2 R. :S. 1876, p, 59, sec. 54.

All other objections were waived, and, as there is no question .as to the jurisdiction, the only question the appellant can raise is whether the complaint of Whjpperman stated facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. This he could raise upon an •appeal to this court by an assignment of error, and he can do the same thing by a bill to review in the lower court. By «either mode, however, the same question is presented, and that is whether the complaint states facts sufficient to constitute a «cause of action. If it does, the judgment for such cause can not be reversed upon an appeal to this court, nor upon proceedings to review. Does the complaint state facts ? It avers, in substance, the execution of the mortgage, the maturity and [427]*427non-payment of the note, the sale and Conveyance of the property embraced in the mortgage to appellant, who promised to pay the mortgage debt. These facts constituted a good cause of action against appellant for a foreclosure of the mortgage. Martin v. Noble, 29 Ind. 216; Bowen v. Wood, 35 Ind. 268; Bayless v. Glenn, 72 Ind. 5.

The complaint was good as against a demurrer for want of ■facts, and of course is good as against an assignment of error for such reason, whether made upon an appeal or by a complaint to review. Indeed, the objection urged against the complaint could not have been reached by a demurrer for want of facts, and we think it may be safely asserted that no objection ■can be raised by such an assignment of error, either upon appeal or upon a bill to review, that could not have been raised by a demurrer. The fact, that the objection could not have been reached by demurrer, shows very clearly that some other remedy should have been adopted. In fact, the real objection is not that the complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action, but that an unauthorized judgment followed a complaint sufficient to entitle the appellee to some other relief. How shall this wrong be remedied ? Not by an assignment of error upon appeal or by bill to review, that fhe complaint does not state facts, as this question is not determined by the judgment that follows, but by the facts averred. If they entitle the party to any relief, the complaint does state facts, and the objection can not be sustained. The remedy is by motion in the court below to modify or correct the judgment. In Barnes v. Wright, 39 Ind. 293, a judgment by default was rendered for a greater sum than was authorized by the complaint, and upon appeal this court said: Where the defendant has been brought into court, and has suffered a judgment to be rendered against him by default, .he can not appeal to this court for the correction of any supposed error in the judgment, without having first applied to the court below for the correction.” The same was decided in Barnes v. Bell, 39 Ind. 328, and in a number of other cases.

[428]*428Had the appellant appealed directly to this court he could, not have obtained a correction of the judgment without having first applied to the lower court for its correction, and, as a. bill of review is in the nature of an appeal, it must follow that he can not accomplish by one mode that which he could, not accomplish by the other. The Indiana, etc., Fire Ins. Co. v. Routledge, 7 Ind. 25; Hardy v. Chipman, 54 Ind. 591. A party may adopt either remedy, but can not pursue both. Dunkle v. Elston, 71 Ind. 585. The adoption of one is a waiver' of the other.

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Bluebook (online)
79 Ind. 424, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/searle-v-whipperman-ind-1881.