Stafford v. McDonnell

238 S.W.2d 432, 361 Mo. 1077, 1951 Mo. LEXIS 607
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedMarch 12, 1951
DocketNo. 42053
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 238 S.W.2d 432 (Stafford v. McDonnell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stafford v. McDonnell, 238 S.W.2d 432, 361 Mo. 1077, 1951 Mo. LEXIS 607 (Mo. 1951).

Opinion

WESTITÜES, C.

[ 433] This is the second appeal in this case. On the former appeal (see 224 S. W. (2d) 951), this court reversed and remanded the case to the trial court with directions to have an accounting as to any transactions occurring since the. appeal was taken and to enter judgment accordingly. See 224 S. W. (2d) l. c. 955, 956.

The trial court in obedience to our mandate heard evidence and entered judgment allowing both plaintiffs and the defendant certain credits. The plaintiffs not being satisfied appealed. The amount in dispute vests this court with appellate jurisdiction. Plaintiffs claim credits in the sum of $25,000. The trial court allowed them $1,500. For a full statement of the case see the opinion on the former appeal.

To understand the situation we must relate h brief history of the case"'. Two tracts of land located in Sullivan County, Missouri, were involved in the original suit. One was a farm of 703 acres known as the Shatto farm; and the other tract of 675 acres was known as the Spangler farm. In November, 1946, O. R. and Leona Newcomer acquired title to both farms. Later the Newcomers executed a deed of trust against the Spangler place to secure, a $12,000 note and a deed of trust against the Shatto land to secure a $13,800 note. These deeds of trust were not satisfied of record at the time of trial but they are not directly involved in this lawsuit.

[1080]*1080[ 434] In March, 1947, the Newcomers conveyed the farms by separate deeds to the plaintiffs, James O. and Emily D. Stafford, subject to the deeds of trust. On February 6, 1948, Stafford agreed to deed to W. O. Richardson all of the Spangler farm except 70 acres. The deed was made subject to the deed of trust of $12,000. These papers were placed in escrow and the transaction was not completed prior to the filing of this lawsuit.

In March, 1948, payments were due on the indebtedness against the farms. The Spangler farm was advertised for sale under the deed of trust. The Staffords and Richardson were not able to obtain the money to pay what was due. Stafford through negotiations with Newcomer and the defendant McDonnell agreed to deed both farms to McDonnell if McDonnell would pay plaintiff Mrs. Stafford $1,000, and pay what was due on the farms such as interest and taxes. McDonnell agreed and the farms were deeded to him on April 19, 1948. Stafford was to have possession of the Shatto farm until March 1, 1949. Later, according to Stafford, two men came to the farms and indicated they were prospective purchasers and had been sent by McDonnell. Thereupon Stafford brought suit to have the deeds conveying title to McDonnell declared mortgages. This court decreed that the transaction constituted a conditional sale, the condition being that if Stafford would pay McDonnell all the money McDonnell had invested in the farm McDonnell was to reconvey title to Stafford. This court further decreed that Richardson, who had intervened in the suit as a plaintiff, should be given a reasonable time in which to perform his contract with Stafford dated February 6, 1948. The principal dispute was with reference to the amount McDonnell had invested in the land. McDonnell claimed that he had advanced Newcomer $10,000 to buy the farms. McDonnell, as the opinion on the former appeal discloses, testified that he informed plaintiffs he had $10,000 invested. That was an inducement for him to save the farms from foreclosure sales. This court decreed that the amount due McDonnell was $10,000, plus $1,000 paid to plaintiff Mrs. Stafford, and certain sums paid as interest and taxes aggregating $13,378.45, less a credit of $500. It was decreed that the' cause be remanded to the trial court to ascertain if since the appeal McDonnell had been compelled to pay further sums to protect the farms and if so, he should be given credit therefor. This court also authorized the trial court to adjust any rights or equities etarising subsequent to the appeal herein between the parties under the relationship existing as the result of the conditional sales herein * * (Emphasis ours)

The trial court allowed McDonnell a credit of $13,378.45 as decreed by this court. It also allowed him $2,419 as payment on the deeds of trust and $552.87 for taxes. These payments were made subsequent to the time the first trial was had. The Staffords make no [1081]*1081complaint as to any of these items except we notice in their brief the amount allowed for taxes was stated as being $518.86. This is evidently an error. The proof showed $552.87 to have been paid and the plaintiffs asked the court to make a finding of fact that McDonnell had paid $552.87 as taxes, penalties, and interest. The total amount the trial court decreed as due by the Staffords was $16,350.32.

The trial court allowed the Staffords credits as follows:

“Cash credit set out in mandate $ 500.00
For removal of buildings by defendant 550.00
For plowing of blue grass pasture by defendant 450.00
Total credits due plaintiffs $1,500.00”

That left a balance due McDonnell of $14,850.32.

The trial court decreed that if the Staffords would pay McDonnell the sum of $14,850.32 by May 1, 1950, the farms were to be reconveyed .to the Staffords. The court further decreed if the Staffords did obtain the farms then Richardson would have thirty days in which to perform his contract of February 6, 1948.

[435] We shall now consider the credits claimed by plaintiffs Staffords against McDonnell. One of these is the Richardson note of $5,000 which plaintiffs say should be charged against McDonnell for the reason that the. indebtedness of Newcomer to McDonnell was reduced by this note. McDonnell testified at the second trial that he had not been paid anything on the Newcomer indebtedness and plaintiffs did not offer any evidence of any such payments. This $5,000 note of Richardson made payable to Newcomer was in dispute in the original suit. This court in its opinion specifically referred to it a number of times. At the top of page 954 of 224 S. W. (2d), this court stated, “We understand The Platt Talley Bank had a suit pending against Richardson on the $5,000 note at the time of trial.” That item was litigated in the first trial, considered by this court on the first appeal, and is, therefore, res judicata. The burden was on plaintiffs to show that McDonnell had received any payments on the Newcomer indebtedness. Plaintiffs in support of their claim with reference to this $5,000 item offered in evidence the entire record of the original trial. We hold the question had been adjudicated and the trial court was right in denying the claim. Nothing new was shown to have occurred sribsequent to the appeal in the first case.

Appellants in addition to the above claim say that they should be allowed the following: “(1) the reasonable rental value of the property during- the period of time of defendant’s possession thereof; (2) damages for waste in plowing up pasture lands; and (3) damages for the tearing down and destruction of buildings.”

The trial court allowed plaintiffs $550 for item 3, i.e., the tearing down of building's, and $450' for item 2, i.e., plowing of pasture. Me-[1082]*1082Donnell did not appeal from the judgment allowing these items. We, therefore, need not consider them.

To understand fully plaintiffs’ contention we have deemed best to quote the following from their brief:

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Related

Ragan v. Schreffler
316 S.W.2d 659 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1958)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
238 S.W.2d 432, 361 Mo. 1077, 1951 Mo. LEXIS 607, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stafford-v-mcdonnell-mo-1951.