Stuart v. Meyer

196 S.W. 615, 1917 Tex. App. LEXIS 718
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 24, 1917
DocketNo. 8549.
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 196 S.W. 615 (Stuart v. Meyer) 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
Stuart v. Meyer, 196 S.W. 615, 1917 Tex. App. LEXIS 718 (Tex. Ct. App. 1917).

Opinion

BUCK, J.

On April 25, 1915, Robert Meyer filed in the district court of Montague county a suit against R. T. Stuart, in which he alleged that, on or about the 25th day of April, 1912, he was the owner and holder Qf 50 shares of stock in the Americap Home Life Insurance Company, for brevity hereinafter called Life Insurance Company, of the par value of $20 per share; that said Life Insurance Company was a good and solvent company paying dividends on its stock; that on said date the defendant, with a fraudulent intent to cheat and defraud plaintiff out of tlie aforesaid stock, came to the town of Bowie, where plaintiff resided, and represented to plaintiff that there was a combination of stockholders in said Life Insurance Company, seeking to control said company to its detriment, and that for his own benefit and the benefit of said company it was neqessary that he, the said Stuart, should be elected president and manager of said company at the coming meeting of the stockholders, and, learning that plaintiff would be unable to attend said meeting, he solicited plaintiff to transfer said stock to him, to be used by the defendant in voting for the purpose of assisting and “officering” the company with the best and most efficient man, promising that so soon as he had used said stock for the purposes aforesaid he would return the same unimpaired to plaintiff; that defendant further represented to plaintiff that he owned 50 shares of common stock and 50 shares of preferred stock, each share of the par value of $10, in the Bankers’ Guaranty Company, hereinafter called Guaranty Company, a private corporation, and that said Guaranty Company was a good and solvent company, and its stock worth par value, and that said stock would be ample security to indemnify plaintiff against any loss during the time he, the defendant, ¡should retain the possession of plaintiff’s stock in the Life Insurance Company aforesaid; that, relying on the representations of defendant, plaintiff delivered to the defendant the said shares of stock in the said Life Insurance Company, with the mutual understanding that defendant would send to plaintiff the amount and kind of stock hereinbefore described in the Guaranty Company, to be held as security only to insure the faithful return to plaintiff of said stock in the Life Insurance Company. Within a few days thereafter, in compliance with defendant’s said promise to plaintiff, defendant did deliver to plaintiff 50 shares of common stock and 50 shares of preferred stock in said Guaranty Company, each of the par value of $10. It was further alleged that the stock in the Guaranty Company was wholly worthless and said company was insolvent, and that defendant well knew at the time he made said representations, and at the time of the transactions hereinabove mentioned, such to be the case.

It was further alleged that defendant had failed and refused to re-exchange the Life Insurance Company stock for the Guaranty Company stock, and that he had sold and transferred the stock in the former company . to other parties; that plaintiff had never in any way mortgaged or incumbered the Guaranty Company stock held by him as security, but had held the same for the purpose of re-exchange, as aforesaid, and he tendered said Guaranty Company stock into court.

Defendant, Stuart, after general demurrer and special exceptions and general denial, answered that the true facts were that on or about February 16, 1912, plaintiff contracted in' writing with the Guaranty Company, acting through its agent, O. B. Stuart, to purchase 100 shares of Guaranty Company stock heretofore described, and agreed to pay and exchange therefor his 50-shares of Life Insurance Company stock, and that there were made no conditions, representations, or agreements other than those contained in the written contract of purchase and exchange. Defendant further pleaded the statute of two years’ limitation, and attached to his petition as an exhibit a memorandum in. writing signed by Robert Meyer and witnessed by O. E. Stuart, reciting that said Meyer had purchased the 100 shares of stock in the Guaranty Company, and had agreed to pay in exchange therefor the 50 shares in the Life Insurance Company, and that “No conditions, representations or agreements other than those printed herein shall be binding on the Bankers’ Guaranty Company or any of its representatives.”

Plaintiff, by trial amendment, denied severally the allegations in defendant’s answer, and specially pleaded that if he ever signed the paper set forth as an exhibit to defendant’s answer, he did so a£ the request of O. E. Stuart, who was then acting for the defendant, R. T. Stuart, and so represented himself, and that said instrument was executed and said stock in the Life Insurance Company was exchanged for the stock in the Guaranty Company in -consummation and adjustment of the agreement theretofore 'made between plaintiff and defendant, and that plaintiff signed such papers as the said O. E. Stuart represented to him were necessary in order to effect the exchange of stocks, that, subsequent to said exchange, plaintiff met defendant and complained to him about the status of said stock, and told him, he considered said Guaranty Company stock greatly depreciated in value and insufficient security for the Life Insurance Company stock which plaintiff had loaned and assigned to defend *617 ant, and that lie (plaintiff) wished better se'curity for his Life Insurance Company stock, or the return of his said stock, and stated to defendant that it was time to effect the re-exchange of said stock, and defendant replied by assuring plaintiff that at an early day he would adjust the matter satisfactorily and return to plaintiff his Life Insurance Company stock, or pay him therefor, and that he need not he uneasy. He further pleaded that he would not have agreed to the arrangement proposed by O. E. Stuart and have exchanged stocks, had he not been advised by the defendant and by O. E. Stuart that the latter represented the defendant, and was acting for him in consummating the agreement theretofore made between plaintiff and defendant.

Defendant, by trial amendment, ¡demurred generally to plaintiff’s trial amendment, and denied the allegations therein contained, and specially that O. E. Stuart was his agent in the transaction pleaded by plaintiff in his original petition, or was in any way authorized to act for him, defendant, in said transaction.

Upon a hearing before the court, judgment was rendered that plaintiff recover from defendant the sum of $625, the value of the Life Insurance Company stock, and costs of suit. The judgment further recited that, in the event defendant should, within 20 days from judgment, turn over to the clerk of the court the 50 shares of Life Insurance Company stock to be delivered by said clerk to plaintiff, or his order, the said delivery should constitute a full satisfaction of the judgment rendered, except as to the costs. It was further provided that upon the delivery by defendant of the Life Insurance Company stock to the clerk, said clerk should deliver to defendant the Guaranty Company stock held by plaintiff and theretofore tendered into court. From this judgment the defendant has appealed.

Before considering the questions presented under appellant’s several assignments of error, it will be proper for us to direct our attention to appellant’s specifications of fundamental error.

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Bluebook (online)
196 S.W. 615, 1917 Tex. App. LEXIS 718, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stuart-v-meyer-texapp-1917.