Seddon v. Simpson

816 So. 2d 915, 2001 La.App. 4 Cir. 2373, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 1519, 2002 WL 1002444
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 17, 2002
DocketNo. 2001-CA-2373
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 816 So. 2d 915 (Seddon v. Simpson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Seddon v. Simpson, 816 So. 2d 915, 2001 La.App. 4 Cir. 2373, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 1519, 2002 WL 1002444 (La. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

11 Judge MIRIAM G. WALTZER.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

On 31 January 2001, Catherine Louise Seddon filed suit in First City Court against Glenn John Simpson. Seddon alleged that during the course of a four-year extra-marital affair she gave birth to Simpson’s daughter. Several months after the child’s birth, Seddon and Simpson separated. Seddon alleged that during the course of their cohabitation Simpson committed theft of her identity, incurring debts of $6,000 in her name. Seddon al[917]*917leged in the alternative that Simpson borrowed $500.11 by using her Circuit City credit card without her knowledge or permission; that he borrowed over $1,000 by using her First Bankcard Center credit card at CompUSA without her knowledge or permission; that he borrowed $6,006.73 by using her First NBC/Bank One check card without her knowledge or permission; and that Simpson failed to honor his commitment to pay the entire $8,000 debt on a promissory note in favor of Dryades Savings Bank which Seddon co-signed, resulting in an unpaid amount of $2,895.75 plus interest and attorneys’ fees. Seddon alleged that Simpson’s various checks drawn in her favor in the 1 ¡.amounts of $400, $40, $286.50 and $600, intended to repay part of his debt to Seddon, were dishonored for insufficient funds. Seddon claimed that she made written demand for payment of the dishonored checks pursuant to the provisions of LSA-R.S. 9:2782.

Simpson filed a general denial, admitting only his status, paternity of Seddon’s child, jurisdiction and venue, demand for the allegedly dishonored checks, and that Dryades Savings Bank filed suit against both Simpson and Seddon for the unpaid amount of $2,895.75 plus interest and attorneys’ fees.

Seddon supplemented her petition by adding copies of her demand letters to Simpson and signed return receipts in connection therewith.

The matter was tried to the court on 20 September 2001 and on 8 October 2001 the trial court rendered judgment in favor of Simpson dismissing Seddon’s claims, with each party to bear its own costs. From that judgment Seddon appeals. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The trial judge entered oral reasons for judgment at the conclusion of the testimony. She found that the parties were romantically involved for a number of years, during which they lived in a communal household, at times with other roommates and at other times with each other only. In this household, the items and responsibilities were shared. The judge rejected Seddon’s claim that the sums charged by Simpson on her accounts were loans to Simpson and found that it was Unot until the romantic relationship broke down that Seddon decided to go back through her records and look to find out which bills could be attributed solely to Simpson. The court rejected that division of expenses, finding as a fact that Simpson and Seddon were living together sharing expenses and that although Seddon kept the credit cards, purchases could not have been made without her authority. The court specifically rejected Seddon’s testimony that certain bills were solely for Simpson’s benefit and found, “the truth is that when the two of them were living together, they were both spending and incurring bills for the benefit of both of them. And despite what the testimony was, it was for the benefit of both of them. They intended to get married at some point, and they actually had a child together.” The judge found that Seddon had two options in dealing with the bills she now disputes. Seddon could have left and no longer allowed Simpson to incur bills. The other option was to make him leave the household. In response to Seddon’s counsel’s request to segregate the expenses attributable only to Simpson, the trial judge found that all the payments were incurred for the benefit of the household. She refused to separate the payments because that would be contrary to the agreement between 'the' parties.

The judge found that Seddon had been repaid for and consented to the charges represented by the NSF checks, some of which were child support payments that [918]*918Seddon acknowledged have been paid. The court noted that this is not the forum to deal with child support and certainly is not the forum to collect on payments repaid in the past.

I ¿THE TESTIMONY

Catherine Seddon, a resident alien citizen of Australia, testified that she came to the United States on a 1-A working visa for a contract nursing operation in 1993. In 1995 she received a resident alien’s pink green card. She subsequently obtained a Social Security number, opened a bank account and established credit. She testified that she met Simpson in a New Orleans bar in 1994, when she was working in Florida and Simpson was living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She visited and stayed with him and eventually came to New Orleans for a contract nursing assignment. In New Orleans, she moved in with Simpson and another man, and lived with Simpson for approximately three years. Their child was born in September 1998, and she left their apartment in January 1999. Seddon testified that she left because Simpson was financially irresponsible and she did not feel the apartment was a good environment in which to rear her child.

Seddon testified that in 1997 she had a check card that allowed her to access, her bank account and pay directly from that account at First NBC. She identified three charges on her June/July 1997 bank statement that she testified were not for her benefit: a transfer of funds that was not made to her account in the amount of $28.53; a charge to the University of New York in Albany in the amount of $10 and a charge to Specialty Books of Athens, Ohio in the amount of $61.94. Seddon testified that she “believed” these charges were for Simpson’s benefit, because she never at-, tended the University of New York and “never purchased books.” She |stestified that she confronted Simpson about the charges and he told her he would pay her back. Seddon admitted on cross-examination that she did not know if the $28.53 transfer was made to Simpson’s account.

, Seddon identified her July/August 1997 First NBC bank statement and testified that she had not authorized the following charges: Nine Technologies, Berkeley, California in the amount of $57.95; Star Sports, Phoenix, Arizona in the amount of $49; and the University of New York in the amount of $27. Although she admitted to having given Simpson a satellite dish, she denied that she had agreed to pay for ongoing digital service. Again, she testified that Simpson promised to reimburse her for these charges.

From the August/September 1997 First NBC statement, Seddon identified allegedly unauthorized charges of $975 for an account in Phoenix, Arizona, and $98.55 for an account in Athens, Ohio. She testified that the Phoenix charge was for Simpson’s tuition to the University of Phoenix, and the Athens charge was for books in connection with his studies. Seddon was in Vancouver, Canada when these charges were made. Seddon testified that a $79.80 charge appearing on that statement was for Simpson’s online Internet access account. Simpson had asked in advance to use Seddon’s account for this charge having agreed, according to Seddon, to reimburse her. Although Seddon denifed she benefited from MSN Online, she admitted on cross-examination that she did, at times, use the Internet, specifically using the MSN account.

|fiOn cross-examination, Seddon testified that she was paid twice a month and had no other sources of income.

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Bluebook (online)
816 So. 2d 915, 2001 La.App. 4 Cir. 2373, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 1519, 2002 WL 1002444, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/seddon-v-simpson-lactapp-2002.