St. Louis Type Foundry v. Taylor

65 S.W. 677, 27 Tex. Civ. App. 349, 1901 Tex. App. LEXIS 285
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 23, 1901
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 65 S.W. 677 (St. Louis Type Foundry v. Taylor) 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
St. Louis Type Foundry v. Taylor, 65 S.W. 677, 27 Tex. Civ. App. 349, 1901 Tex. App. LEXIS 285 (Tex. Ct. App. 1901).

Opinion

BOOKHOUT, Associate Justice.

This is an action by the defendant in error against the St. Louis Type Foundry and W. L. Haydon. upon a claimant’s bond, alleging a breach of the bond by reason of the claimant’s having failed to establish its right to the property, and praying for judgment against the principal and sureties upon the bond. A trial resulted in a verdict and judgment for the plaintiff against the principal and surety. The principal and surety have each prosecuted a writ of error to this court.

The following are the facts shown by the record: Mrs. H. C. Taylor-sued C. E. Beard for $317, rent, on October 2, 1889. A distress warrant was issued and levied on certain personal property on same day,, as the property of Beard. On October 4, 1889, the St. Louis Type Foundry executed an affidavit and claim bond for the trial of the right to the property. The bond was for $1000, with W. L. Haydon and W. L. Vinson as sureties. The officer valued said property at $500. Claimant had the affidavit and bond filed in the County Court on October 10, 1889, and case docketed No. 870. Claimant, believing that the County Court' did not have jurisdiction of the claim suit, dismissed it during said October term, 1889. On February 22, 1890, the claimant filed said affidavit and bond in the District Court, and had the case-docketed No. 3069. On April 1, 1891, the District Court sustained *350 the plea of the plaintiff to its jurisdiction, and for this reason dismissed said suit. On October 19, 1891, the claimant again filed the .affidavit and bond in the County Court, and had the case docketed No.' 1105. At this time the claimant intended to prosecute a writ of error from the judgment of the District Court sustaining the plea to its jurisdiction. While it was doing this, it intended that the case should remain on the docket of the County Court. It concluded, however, that it could not submit to the judgment of the District Court, and at ihe same time appeal from it, so, on November 5, 1891, it dismissed its suit in the County Court, No. 1105. A short time after this it sued out .a writ of error from the judgment of the District Court. On March 14, 1894, the judgment of the District Court was affirmed. 6 Texas Civ. App., 732. On April 19, 1894, the claimant again filed the affidavit and claim bond in the County Court and docketed the case.

On April 27, 1894, the St. Louis Type Foundry, defendant, filed its tender of issues. On December 4, 1894, the plaintiff, under direction of the court, filed her tender of issues in which she set up her debt' and alleged the suing out of a distress warrant, the levy of the same upon the property, and further, that her claim had been reduced to judgment and her landlord’s line foreclosed. She further alleged that the St. Louis Type Foundry claimed the property, and had made an affidavit claiming the same, and executed a claim bond in the sum of $1000, with W. L. Haydon and W. L. Vinson as sureties, setting out the conditions of the bond, and that by virtue of said bond and oath the property had been turned over to the claimant. She claimed that she was entitled to the property by virtue of the distress proceedings and the foreclosure of her lien thereon. She prayed for judgment against the claimant and sureties on the claim bond for the value of the property, with interest thereon, for damages, and for general relief. The attorney for the claimant accepted notice in writing of the filing of this pleading and tender of issues, the same having been filed in vacation. Plaintiff, on April 27, 1895,. filed a súpplemental tender of issues in which she alleged, in addition to the allegations contained in the original tender of issues, that the* claimant had abandoned its claim to the property by reason of its failure to file the affidavit and claim bond in the County Court within the time required by law. She prayed that the claim suit be dismissed, and for judgment on the claim bond against the principal and sureties. A trial, in 1898, resulted in a judgment for the defendant claimant. The plaintiff prosecuted a writ of error to this court which resulted in a reversal of the judgment of the trial court. 21 Texas Civ. App., 62. We held that the claimant had abandoned its claim to the property, and entered judgment dismissing the same. We declined to render judgment on the claimant’s bond because the value of the property claimed had not been found by the trial court. Upon the filing of the mandate from this court, the surety, W. L. Haydon, and the claimant each answered by general demurrer, general denial, and the four years statute of limitations. To this plead *351 ing plaintiff excepted, and specially replied to the plea of limitations. The trial resulted in a verdict and judgment for the plaintiff. The surety, W. L. Haydon, and the defendant, St. Louis Type Foundry, have prosecuted a writ of error to this court. The surety, W. L. Vinson, having died while the suit was pending, the cause abated as to him.

The plaintiffs in error, under their first and second assignments of error, contend that the filing of plaintiff’s cross-action on the bond did not interrupt the running of the statute of limitations; that plaintiff should have gone further and caused citation to be served upon the defendant and surety. The suit was a proceeding under the statute for the trial of the right of property, and is to be governed by that statute. Under the statute the claimant is the active party. It is his duty to file the oath and bond in the proper court, and when he files the same in the court he becomes a party to the suit and submits himself to the jurisdiction of the court. He is in court for the adjudication of all matters which may be litigated in that proceeding. The statute authorizes a recovery, in that proceeding, of a judgment against the principal and sureties on the claim bond in the event th,e claimant fails to establish his right to the property. He is not entitled to citation and notice of a cross-bill seeking to recover over in the claim suit on the bond.

The next contention is that the sureties on the claim bond were entitled to citation and notice. It is prescribed by statute that "in all cases where any claimant of property under the provisions of this title shall fail to establish his right thereto, judgment shall be rendered against him and his sureties for the value of the property, with legal interest thereon from the date of the bond.” When the sureties signed the claim bond in order to enable their principal to prosecute a suit for the trial of the right of property, they so far identified themselves with their principal as to become parties to the record. They consent that if he fails to establish his right to the property, a summary judgment may be rendered against them for the value of property and interest. The effect of the bond is to place the sureties before the court for the purposes mentioned in the statute, and they are not entitled to citation and notice of a cross-action filed in the claim suit by the plaintiff seeking judgment on the bond. Marks v. Brown, 42 Texas, 114; Johnson v. Blum, 17 Texas Civ. App., 260; Cabell v. Floyd, 21 Texas Civ. App., 135. It follows that the contentions of plaintiffs in error under their first and second assignments of error can not be sustained.

The next contention of the plaintiffs in error is that the court erred in the following charge: “If you believe from the evidence that the said St.

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Bluebook (online)
65 S.W. 677, 27 Tex. Civ. App. 349, 1901 Tex. App. LEXIS 285, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/st-louis-type-foundry-v-taylor-texapp-1901.