Spangler v. Jones

861 S.W.2d 392, 1993 Tex. App. LEXIS 2691, 1993 WL 174276
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 24, 1993
Docket05-92-01472-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by48 cases

This text of 861 S.W.2d 392 (Spangler v. Jones) 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
Spangler v. Jones, 861 S.W.2d 392, 1993 Tex. App. LEXIS 2691, 1993 WL 174276 (Tex. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinions

OPINION

LAGARDE, Justice.

Mike Spangler appeals the take-nothing judgment entered against him by the trial court following a jury trial. In three points of error, Spangler contends that the trial court erred in submitting the issue of ratification of contract to the jury because: (a) the doctrine of ratification does not apply to an agreement that the principal must accept to protect his interests; (b) the doctrine of ratification is not a defense to a tort action; and (c) Jones had “unclean hands.” Jones brings two crosspoints contending there was no evidence that he was Spangler’s agent. We sustain Spangler’s second point of error, overrule the crosspoints, reverse the trial court’s judgment, render judgment for Span-gler for $5000 actual damages and $5000 exemplary damages, and remand the cause to the trial court for determination of prejudgment interest in accordance with this opinion.

[394]*394This is the second appeal of this case. On the first appeal, we held that the trial court erred in granting a directed verdict for Jones and remanded the cause for a new trial. Spangler v. Jones, 797 S.W.2d 125, 133 (Tex.App.—Dallas 1990, writ denied). Because we thoroughly set out the factual background of this case in our first opinion, we give only a brief summary of it here.

Spangler was a shareholder, officer, and director of Trinity Loss Management, Inc. (Trinity) along with Conner and Jones. The three decided to sell Trinity to Unigard Mutual Insurance Company (Unigard) and placed Jones in charge of negotiating the sale agreement with Unigard. Spangler believed that the final agreement treated him unfairly, but he signed it after Jones told him that Unigard would not alter the agreement. On the day that the sale was to close, Spangler presented Jones and Conner with a letter setting out his grievances and threatened not to sign over his shares of Trinity to Unigard if Jones and Conner did not sign the letter. Jones and Conner protested but signed the letter, and the parties closed the sale. Span-gler later sued Jones for breach of fiduciary duty, constructive fraud, breach of agency contract, exemplary damages, and attorney’s fees.

On retrial of the case, the trial court granted a partial directed verdict dismissing Span-gler’s claims for damages occurring after 1986 and dismissing his claims of partnership or joint venture between Spangler and Jones. The jury found that Jones acted as Span-gler’s agent in negotiating the sale of Trinity to Unigard, that the sale agreement was not fair to Spangler, that Jones breached a fiduciary duty to Spangler in negotiating the sale, and that Jones committed this breach of fiduciary duty knowingly or with conscious disregard for Spangler’s rights. The jury determined that Spangler’s damages were $5000 and that Jones should pay another $5000 in exemplary damages.' The jury also found that Spangler did not waive any claim against Jones and was not estopped from complaining about Jones’s acts or conduct in negotiating the sale agreement. However, the jury did find that Spangler ratified Jones’s acts and conduct associated with the sale. The trial court entered a take-nothing judgment against Spangler based on the jury’s verdict.

RATIFICATION

In the second point of error, Spangler contends the trial court erred in entering judgment based on the jury’s affirmative finding on the issue of ratification because ratification is an equitable defense that is not applicable in a tort action for breach of fiduciary duty.

Jones relies on section 416 of the Restatement (Second) of Agency in support of his argument that Spangler’s ratification of his acts and conduct relieves him of liability to Spangler. Section 416 states: “The ratification or other affirmance by the principal of an unauthorized act done by an agent acting in excess of his power to bind the principal releases the agent from liability in damages to the principal for having violated a duty to him_” Restatement (Second) of Agency § 416 (1958) (emphasis added).1 Jones’s reliance on section 416 of the Restatement is misplaced. Section 416 relieves the agent only of liability for unauthorized acts in excess of the agent’s power to bind the principal. Spangler’s claim of breach of fiduciary duty goes beyond Jones’s liability for acting in excess of his power to bind Spangler to a contract; Spangler also claimed that Jones benefitted from the sale agreement at Span-gler’s expense. Section 416 does not purport to relieve the agent of liability for profiting at the expense of the principal.

Jones had the duty to turn over to Spangler all benefits from the transaction he received at Spangler’s expense. See Jones v. Allen, 294 S.W.2d 259, 262 (Tex.Civ.App—Galveston 1956, writ refd n.r.e.); 3 C.J.S. Agency § 274 (1973); Restatement (Second) of Agency § 403 (1958). The jury instruction stated, “A transaction is ‘fair’ if the [395]*395fiduciary does not significantly benefit from it at the expense of the beneficiary as viewed in light of circumstances existing at the time of the transaction.” Thus, in light of its instructions, when the jury found that the agreement of sale was not “fair” to Spangler, it found in essence that Jones significantly benefitted from the agreement at the expense of Spangler. The record does not show that Jones turned over to Spangler the benefits he received at Spangler’s expense. Accordingly, Jones cannot rely on section 416 to relieve him of liability to Spangler.

Jones also relies on the following language of comment a to section 408 of the Restatement: “If ... [the] agent ... was disobedient in exceeding his authority, the ratification terminates his liability to the principal for the wrong.” Restatement (Second) of Agency § 408 cmt. a (1958). The “wrong” for which the Restatement would terminate liability is the agent’s exceeding his authority. Like section 416,2 it does not purport to relieve the agent of liability for not turning over to the principal all benefits the agent received at the principal’s expense. Because Jones did not turn over to Spangler the benefits he received at Spangler’s expense, this comment is inapplicable.

The cases on which Jones relies are distinguishable. Two of the cases discuss ratification in the context of equitable relief, not legal damages as are sought here. See Land Title Co. v. Stigler, 609 S.W.2d 754, 757-58 (Tex.1980); Guion v. Guion, 475 S.W.2d 865, 872 (Tex.Civ.App.—Dallas 1971, writ refd n.r.e.) (“[T]he findings on the part of the trial court concerning ratification ... support ap-pellees’ contention that appellants’ cause of action for equitable relief is barred, as a matter of law.” (Emphasis added.)). Jones’s other cases are distinguishable because they do not involve the issue of an agent’s liability to its principal for breach of fiduciary duty. See Johnson v. Smith, 697 S.W.2d 625 (Tex.App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1985, no writ) (suit by estate of seller of real estate against purchaser); B & R Dev., Inc. v. Rogers, 561 S.W.2d 639 (Tex.Civ.App.—Texarkana 1978, writ refd n.r.e.) (suit by purchaser of real estate against seller); Wise v.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Robert Huber v. ISI Contracting, Inc.
Tex. App. Ct., 9th Dist. (Beaumont), 2026
Douglas W. STREBEL, Appellant, v. John C. WIMBERLY II, Appellee
371 S.W.3d 267 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012)
FNFS, Ltd. v. Harwood (In Re Harwood)
404 B.R. 366 (E.D. Texas, 2009)
City of Alton v. Sharyland Water Supply Corp.
277 S.W.3d 132 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009)
In Re Harwood
401 B.R. 782 (E.D. Texas, 2009)
Meridien Hotels, Inc. v. LHO Financing Partnership I, L.P.
255 S.W.3d 807 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2008)
Crooks v. M1 Real Estate Partners, Ltd.
238 S.W.3d 474 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2007)
In Re Kilgore Meadowbrook Country Club, Inc.
315 B.R. 412 (E.D. Texas, 2004)
Miller v. Kennedy & Minshew, Professional Corp.
142 S.W.3d 325 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2004)
Willis v. Donnelly
118 S.W.3d 10 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
861 S.W.2d 392, 1993 Tex. App. LEXIS 2691, 1993 WL 174276, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/spangler-v-jones-texapp-1993.