Taylor v. Stull

125 N.W. 1105, 86 Neb. 573, 1910 Neb. LEXIS 126
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedApril 9, 1910
DocketNo. 16,459
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 125 N.W. 1105 (Taylor v. Stull) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Taylor v. Stull, 125 N.W. 1105, 86 Neb. 573, 1910 Neb. LEXIS 126 (Neb. 1910).

Opinion

Fawcett, J.

This is the second time this case has been before us. Our former opinion, reported in 79 Neb. 295, contains such a full and accurate statement of the case that none further need be made. On retrial in the district court a decree was entered establishing the attorney’s lien of Byron Clark, intervener, in the sum of $485, with interest from September 10, 1901, and awarding intervener an execution therefor. From this decree defendant appeals.

We will consider defendant’s points in the order in which they appear in his brief. His first point is a repetition of his contention at the former hearing that “in a bastardy proceeding an attorney’s lien should not be allowed to exist.” This point was decided adversely to defendant on the former hearing, and no good reason has been advanced why it should be again considered.

The second point is: “The court had no power to direct execution against the property of the appellant.” This we think is the only real question for consideration. As stated in the former opinion, the judgment as originally [575]*575entered against defendant was in the sum of $1,800. This judgment defendant attempted to compromise with the plaintiff, Taylor, on September 10, 1901, by the payment of $1,000. This settlement was set aside, and on December 4, 1901, the district court entered an order that the said sum of $1,000 be applied upon the original judgment; that there still remained of said judgment unpaid $800, and ordered defendant to give a new bond for $1,600, conditioned for the payment of said remaining $800 and costs; requiring payments to be made to the clerk of the court for the benefit of plaintiff, and finding that said payments should begin June 1, 1905, and continue at the rate of $15 a month, payable quarterly thereafter until the full sum of $800 should be paid. It is admitted that this order of the court has never been appealed from, and it must therefore be treated as a final determination of the amount of the payments still to be made by defendant and of the time Avhen such payments should begin. It is also admitted that no part of the said $800 has been paid by defendant. The decree appealed from in the matter at bar Avas entered January 25, 1909. It thus appears that at the time of entering such decree defendant Avas in default of the quarterly payments of the monthly alloAvance for three years and seven months. The amount actually due from defendant to plaintiff would therefore be considerably in excess of the amount of intervener’s lien. It is contended by defendant that “nowhere in the (bastardy) act, or by any interpretation of it by this or any other court, can it be collected or enforced by execution. The act proAddes that upon a conviction the court shall adjudge the amount to be paid, which may be enforced by imprisonment, or by the execution of a bond for the performance of the judgment. This remedy is conclusive, adequate and certain. Such a bond has been given, and if there are any payments unpaid the remedy is by a suit upon the bond, and not by an execution against the appellant or his property.” In this contention we are unable to concur. While we concede that decisions may be found sustaining de[576]*576fendant’s contention, we think both reason and the weight of authority are against him.

In Commonwealth v. Snyder, 4 Pa. C. C. R. 261, an application was made to set aside a fi. fa. issued to compel the payment of a fine, costs of prosecution, and lying in expenses, etc., under a decree of the court, upon the alleged ground that “there is no authority to issue, said writ.” After discussing several general acts of the assembly, the opinion states: “Under these several acts of assembly, it seems to us the power of the court of quarter sessions to award process to collect the fines, etc., by writ of fi. fa. cannot be questioned. This is the appropriate writ coming-down to us from the common law by which to levy and collect any debt that may be due either the commonwealth or an individual. * * * If defense had been taken upon the ground that the fine, costs, and debt had been paid, we would then have made provisions for some issue in which the question of payment could have been determined. It was, however, admitted upon the argument and not denied by the defendant, that nothing had been paid. So that the only defense left to the defendant is the technical one referred to herein. This defense comes with bad grace from one whose whole duty should have been to provide support for his own offspring, even though he may repudiate the mother who gave it birth. Until better reasons are shown, we will hold this father to the slight duty imposed upon him by the decree of the quarter sessions. ' We therefore hereby approve and confirm the issuing of said writ of fi. fa., with same effect as if the former decree had been formally written out and entered upon record, which, though an oversight, was neglected to be done prior to the issuing of the writ, but which writ was issued upon the direction of the court. And we further dismiss the rule to set aside the fi. fa. at the costs of the defendant.”

In McLaughlin v. Whitten, 32 Me. 21, the court say: “If the mother should recover judgment after the liberation of the father of the child from the imprisonment [577]*577caused by his neglect to provide the bonds, according to the order, she is not limited by the statute, giving her the remedy, in the use of all the means to which resort may be made to enforce the payment of judgments in ordinary cases.”

In Lessee of Darby v. Carson, 9 Ohio, 149, in considering a statute exactly like ours, the court, in the syllabus, say: “Such order may be enforced by execution as in other cases, tlu'- security given under the act being resorted to only in case of the inability of the defendant.” In the opinion, on page 151, the court say: “But it is said, the security by bond in these cases takes the place of execution, and that the only remedy upon "the judgment, is upon the bond. This by no means follows. We think the bond and security only intended as a resort, after an ineffectual attempt to obtain satisfaction by execution. This is analogous to our general policy to subject the security only in case of the inability of the principal debtor.” This holding of the Ohio court is so squarely in point and appeals to us as so sound in reasoning that Ave shall not pursue the authorities further.

As stated by the supreme court of Maine in McLaughlin v. Whitten, supra, we think that plaintiff, or intervener, who for the purpose of this case stands in her shoes, “is not limited by the statute, giving her the remedy, in the use of all the means to Avhich resort may be made to enforce the payment of judgments in ordinary cases”, the speediest of which, when the judgment debtor is a man of property, is Avell kuoAvn to be the Avrit of execution. We therefore hold that the trial court did not err in awarding intervener an execution for the amount of his lien, the record shoAving that there Avas then actually due and unpaid from the defendant to the plaintiff more than sufficient to satisfy the same. While there may be some question as to the -correctness of that part of the judgment of the court which provided that, in the event the amount then due should not be sufficient to pay the lien, execution [578]*578should issue for subsequent payments as they respectively became due, until the lien of intervener is paid in full, that matter is immaterial here, as there was then past due and unpaid sufficient to satisfy it.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
125 N.W. 1105, 86 Neb. 573, 1910 Neb. LEXIS 126, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-v-stull-neb-1910.