Seaton v. Dye

263 S.W.2d 544, 37 Tenn. App. 323, 1953 Tenn. App. LEXIS 91
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedJanuary 8, 1953
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 263 S.W.2d 544 (Seaton v. Dye) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Seaton v. Dye, 263 S.W.2d 544, 37 Tenn. App. 323, 1953 Tenn. App. LEXIS 91 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1953).

Opinion

HOWARD, J.

The original bill in this cause was filed in the Chancery Court of Knox County on October 26, 1942 by W. P. Seaton against S. F. Dye, C. W. Jack, Fred *326 S. Price, C. L. Rhodes and others. It alleges that complainant is the owner of a matured note for $6,000, ex-; ecuted by the above named defendants to Cumberland College, and secured by mortgage trust deed upon described property in Knox County referred to in this record as the Beaman Lake Tract.

It prays judgment against the named defendants and sale of the mortgaged property.

On January 26, 1943, the named defendants, except Fred S. Price, filed answer, pleading that foreclosure of the mortgage should be stayed under the Soldiers and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act of Congress, 50 U.S.C.A. Appendix, Sec. 501 et seq., because Fred S. Place, one of the defendants, was in the armed service of the United States.

On J une 24, 1943 R. "W. Brown, by leave of Court, filed his intervening petition in the cause, alleging that he was owner of a matured note for $7,794.33, executed to him by the above named defendants, and secured by a second deed of trust upon the same property securing the note held by complainant W. P. Seaton.

This petition prayed for process against the above named defendants for judgment against them, and foreclosure and sale of the property.

It does not appear that process on this intervening petition was issued or served on defendants.

On July 2, 1943 decree was entered in the cause granting recovery against the named defendants in favor of W. P. Seaton for the balance due on his note, and in favor of R. W. Brown for the balance due on his note, and ordering sale of the property for payment of said decrees.

Sale by a Special Commissioner was made, and confirmed, on August 31, 1943, at the price of $10,000, which was applied first, to the satisfaction of the decree in favor of W. P. Seaton, next to the cost of the cause, and balance *327 of $2,282.05 was applied on the indebtedness of R. "W. Brown.

On September 16,1943, S. F. Dye, C. W. Jack and C. L. Rhodes jointly with their wives filed answer to the intervening petition of R. W. Brown, admitting the execution of the note to R. W. Brown and trust deed securing same and balance unpaid thereon, as alleged in his petition.

In the defendant’s answer it was averred that because defendant Fred S. Price is in the armed service of the United States, no deficiency judgment could be entered against him under the Soldiers and Sailors Relief Act of Congress.

It was further averred that the purported decree entered against defendants was not a final decree because no process was served on any of the defendants to the intervening petition; that R. W. Brown “accepted the second mortgage upon said real estate as security for a balance due him on the purchase price thereof, and should be forced and required to look to said real estate solely for any sum due him” as a matter of public policy.

It was further averred that the purchase of the property by defendants was induced by representations made by R. W. Brown that .a colored amusement park was to be established on the premises, and that he had wide and varied contacts with leaders of the colored race, etc., which was a material part of the “arrangement and agreement between your defendants and the intervening petitioner ’ ’ and ‘ ‘ but for said agreement and representations on the part of the intervening petitioner, your defendants never would have entered into the agreement to purchase said real estate.”

It was then alleged “the intervening petitioner failed and refused to secure the proper funds and means from the members of the colored race in this vicinity with which *328 to improve and to develop said real estate as lie liad promised and agreed to do, and which was a part of the contract existing between the parties.”

It was farther averred that “the great war” arose soon afterward which prevented defendants from buying necessary building material for the amusement park, which was the purpose of the purchase of the property, and since the purpose had become “illegal ,as a result of the war ’ ’ defendants are not liable for any deficiency.

It was further averred that the County Planning Commission of Knox County had refused to permit the property to be developed for “the purposes aforesaid.”

It was further averred that prior to the sale of the property to defendants by the petitioner, he had been permanently enjoined “from selling or disposing of the said real estate in any manner whatsoever”, which injunction was in full force and effect when the sale was made, but not known to defendants until about a year ago, which would be September 1942, and that petitioner is in Court with “unclean hands” and should be repelled from recovering a deficiency judgment for that reason.

An amendment to this answer was filed on February 28, 1944, averring that as part of their contract to purchase said real estate petitioner agreed that in event the Amusement Park could not be established or for any other reason defendants desired him to do so, he would take the property off their hands and save them harmless in any event, which was a material inducement to the contract of purchase.

Motion was made to strike parts of the answer as amended, which was overruled.

On March 16, 1946, R. W. Brown, petitioner, was allowed to file an amended petition to show that defendant, Fred S. Price, had been discharged from the Army, and *329 to credit the amount sued for by the $2,282.05 received! from sale of the property, and pray for a deficiency* judgment of $5,995.47 against defendants.

On May 8,1946 defendant Fred S. Price filed his answer to the intervening petition, adopting the answer of his co-defendants, and specially pleading that the conveyance to him and co-defendants was made by it. W. Brown in violation of an injunction granted by order of the Chancery Court of Roane County, Tennessee, on December 7, 1939, in cause styled Hazel Hagler McCurdy v. R. W. Brown, reading as follows:

“Upon application of the complainants in their hill and at bar, the defendants are hereby enjoined from in any manner disposing of, selling or encumbering any of the assets of the estate of T. L. Brown, deceased, particularly the Beaman Lake property near Knoxville in Knox County, Tennessee, pending further order of this Court. ’ ’

On June 22, 1946, RL W. Brown gave his deposition in the cause, filing the note for $7,794.33, signed by defendants, with payments credited between January 15 and March 31, 1942, amounting to $1058, and a further credit of $2,282.05 as proceeds from sale of the property. Brown testified that the claims sued for in the Roane County case had all been paid, and that suit dismissed and filed a certified copy of order entered in that cause on April 24, 1946, showing satisfaction in full of the judgment. Brown also filed as exhibit to his deposition copy of sale contract entered into on September 5, 1941, between him as seller and S. F.

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Bluebook (online)
263 S.W.2d 544, 37 Tenn. App. 323, 1953 Tenn. App. LEXIS 91, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/seaton-v-dye-tennctapp-1953.