St. Louis S. F. R. Co. v. James

1912 OK 776, 128 P. 279, 36 Okla. 196, 1912 Okla. LEXIS 842
Supreme Court of Oklahoma·Decided November 26, 1912·No. 1307·Published·Cited by 15 cases

Opinion

Opinion by

BREWER, C.

This is a suit for damages for loss of weight, grade, and market, growing out of a shipment *198 of twelve car loads of beef cattle shipped on the 15th day of March, 1907, and is based on negligent handling and delays upon the part of the carrier. The defendant in its answer, after an-admission of its corporate existence, the receipt of the cattle as. alleged, and a general denial of the remainder of the petition,, sets up four separate written contracts of shipment, and alleges-three separate defenses based thereon. These defenses are based on paragraphs 4-, 7, 11, and 14 of the written contract of shipment. Paragraph 4 provides against liability for failure to ship, or deliver at any particular time or at any particular market, and for delays caused by storm, failure of machinery, etc. Paragraph' 11 requires, as a condition precedent to the recovery of damages-for the delay, loss, or injury to the shipment, that a notice in writing be given to certain officers of the carriers, therein specified, within one day after delivery of the stock at destination. Paragraph 14 is a limitation upon the time for bringing suit. The reply admits the execution of the contracts pleaded in the-answer, but seeks to avoid the force of same by alleging that they were based upon an unreasonable and illegal consideration, and further that plaintiffs were compelled to accept the terms in-the contract in order to make the shipment, inasmuch as the only other rate offered the shipper was a prohibitive one. The-reply further pleads a waiver of the contract provisions respecting the giving of the written notice of damage, and further that the provision limiting the time of bringing the action is contrary to law and void, but, even if valid, that it had been waived by the carrier by its action in holding the claim sued on under advisement and pending settlement, until the time of bringing suit-named in the contract had expired. The reply was verified. On the issues .thus presented, the cause was tried to a jury on December 28, 1908, and resulted in a verdict and judgment for plaintiff in the sum of $1,000.

We gather from a reading of plaintiff in error’s brief that it relies for a reversal upon the four following general propositions: (1) That the judgment is void because the term-of court had lapsed by operation of law at the time of its rendition. (2) Refusal of the court to instruct the jury that the. *199 failure to give the notice of the damages as provided in the contract was a bar to recovery. (3) Failure of the evidence to ■show a waiver of the notice relative to damages, and the admission of incompetent evidence tending to show such waiver. (4) Excessive damages.

We will consider the points made in their order.

At the former hearing of this case we were of the opinion, and so held, that, at the time this judgment was rendered, the term of court had lapsed by operation of law, and that the judgment was therefore coram non judice and void; but, from the ■petition for rehearing and the briefs supporting the same, we have been led to believe that in our former opinion we had ■overlooked controlling decisions, and therefore arrived at an erroneous conclusion.

Upon this point the record shows the following state of facts: Upon the calling of the cause for trial December 28, 1908, the carrier objected to the jurisdiction of the court to proceed with the trial in the following language:

“Now comes the defendant and objects to proceeding at this time for the reason and upon the grounds that the November, 1908, term of this court has expired, and that there is at this time no term of court at which the proceeding may be had, and upon that motion and objection the defendant desires to call testimony."

The record and proof introduced on this point showed the ■following:

“The regular November term of the district court of Jackson county was fixed by order of the Supreme Court to begin ■on the 30th day of November, 1908, and may continue to and ■including December 31, 1908.”

Eater by order of the Supreme Court said term was extended “so as to continue to and include the 9th day of-January, 1909.” The clerk of the court, testifying from the records, •showed the following orders as to adjournment:

“December 18, 1908, court then adjourned by proclamation ■of the sheriff until Monday (December 21st), 1908, at 10:00 ■o’clock a. m.”

With no intervening orders it is further shown:

*200 “December 21, 1908. Now on this 21st day of December, 1908, at 10:00 o’clock a. m. Hon. J. T. Johnson, judge, did not appear to open court for the reason that he was sick and unable to attend, and after waiting until 11:00 o’clock a. m. of said day and the judge still did not appear and the sheriff by proclamation adjourned court until Monday, the 28th, 1908, at 10:00' o’clock a. m.”

The clerk further testified that the judge of the court was-not present when said order was made. On December 28, 1908,. the judge appeared and opened court and tried the case. The protests of counsel, as above shown, were based on purely legal grounds; it not being contended that any prejudice, inconvenience, or state of unpreparedness had resulted from the situation..

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St. Louis S. F. R. Co. v. James, 1912 OK 776, 128 P. 279, 36 Okla. 196, 1912 Okla. LEXIS 842 (Okla. 1912).

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