The City of Boston

182 F. 174, 1909 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8
District Court, D. Massachusetts·Decided August 10, 1909·No. No. 161·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinions

'DODGE, District judge.

Since the opinion in this case, dated February 18, 1909 (182 Fed. 171), there has been a hearing before the court upon the proof of these claims; reference to a commissioner being waived by both parties.

The Eastern Dredging Company was served with process, issued in accordance with the opinion referred to, summoning it to appear on a day named and defend the claim made in this case by Mary E. [175]*175Davenport, and also the claim made by Vernon B. Davenport. On the days named special appearances were entered for the Eastern Dredging Company, and it also filed.exceptions to and motions to dismiss the process summoning it to appear, declaring its special appearance to be for the purpose of objecting to the validity of said process and the jurisdiction of the court to issue it. These exceptions were overruled, and the motions to dismiss denied by the court. Thereupon the Eastern Dredging Company filed answers to each of said claims, in which, however, it expressly reserved its objections and exceptions, and its right to appeal from the orders of the court overruling or denying them. Objection was made by the petitioners to the filing of these answers, but such objections were overruled.

As between the Winnisimmet Company, which seeks limitation of liability in this case, and these two damage claimants, the hearing was upon the same pleadings as were before the court at the time of the opinion herein, dated July 9, 1907.

As has been pointed out in the opinion first above referred to, dated February 18, 1909, the result of the decision of the Court of Appeals in this case is that claims for any damages which either of these damage claimants may have suffered, and of which the collision alone was the cause, they may prove in these proceedings against the Winni-simmet Company, because its ferryboat is now held to blame for the collision, as well as the Eastern Dredging Company’s scow. Some of the evidence relied on in support of Mary E. Davenport’s claim is found in the record which has been before the Court of Appeals in this case. Further evidence in support of it has been introduced in this hearing, and evidence has also been introduced in support of Vernon B. Davenport’s claim. In the same hearing evidence has also been introduced on behalf of the Winnisimmet Company and the Eastern Dredging Company to meet that relied upon by the damage claimants.

The. Court of Appeals has also decided in this case that this court erred in refusing on October 6, 1907, to permit the claimant, Mary E-Davenport, to prosecute her action brought in the Massachusetts superior court against the Winnisimmet Company to a final judgment, in order that the damages sustained by her might be liquidated without further trial. She should have been permitted, according to the opinion of the Court of Appeals, to bring the proceedings in the superior court to the ordinary conclusion, subject to the directions subsequently to be given by this court with reference to her sharing with other claimants as to any judgment which she might obtain. She has, accordingly, since the mandate in this case, as appeared at the hearing by a certificate of the court wherein her action was pending, recovered judgment for the sum of $3,081 damages, and' costs of suit taxed at $79.27. It appears, from a certified copy of the docket entries in the case referred to, that the bill of exceptions, pending when this case was before the Court of Appeals, was dismissed by the consent of the defendant on December 31, 1908, and that the judgment above referred to was entered on January 4, 1909. The amount of damages' for which the judgment was entered is apparently the amount of the verdict rendered December 4, 1905, or .$2,600, with interest thereon to the date of the judgment. The first question to. be decided is [176]*176whether this Court-is hound to treat' Mary R. Davenport’s claim as duly proved in the amount of the judgment for the purposes of these proceedings. It is contended on her behalf that the judgment recovered by her in the state court is res ad judicata, and she has the right to make proof of it in these proceedings for the purpose of showing the amount of damage sustained by her as the result of the Winnisimmet Company’s negligence, that proof by her of said judgment is conclusive of the amount of damages sustained by her, and that the said company is estopped by said judgment from denying that the amount thereof is the measure of damages sustained by her as the result of its negligence. The respondent, on the other hand, contends that said judgment is to be treated here as advisory only, and that this court may nevertheless find, and should find, in view of the evidence before it, that Mrs. Davenport sustained no damages by reason of said collision, or that her damages so sustained were at the most nominal.

It seems to me clear that the Court of Appeals intended the final results of Mrs. Davenport’s suit in the state court to operate as a liquidation of her claim in these proceedings, at least unless some very strong reason to the contrary could be made to appear. The court has said in its opinion:

“Therefore the only question is whether the amount of damages to which she is entitled should be liquidated anew by the District Court, or whether that court may permit the proceedings in the superior court to go to judgment.”

It has further said:

“It would be grossly inequitable, in the absence of anything showing that injustice would be done by allowing completion of the proceedings in the superior court, to deprive Mrs. Davenport of a verdict obtained under the circumstances of this case, in consequence of a petition for limited liability filed after the verdict was obtained, and more than two years after the occurrence of the collision here involved, with the consequent loss of labor and expense involved in the suit.”

■The court has then pointed out that, in equity or bankruptcy proceedings, liquidation of claims by litigation in other courts is not infrequently allowed, and the inference is that the court saw no reason why . the same course should not be followed in proceedings like these. But I think the opinion also shows that the Court of Appeals has regarded-the. District Court as not absolutely bound by the result of the state court-suit- under, any and all the contingencies which might occur1 in '.the. course- of further proceedings to be taken here under its mandatfe,- but has contemplated as possible a departure from or a modification -of those results by this court, if the accomplishment of justice between the. parties should require the adoption of such a course. Thus it. is said ‘in'the opinion-:

“There is no suggestion that the damages awarded in the superior court are. excessive, and therefore there is no fundamental reason why the District Court might.not and should .not permit the suit in the superior court- to go. to judgment.”',

• It would seem, however, that, if satisfied since the mandate that the dafnages referred to aré excessive-, this court might reduce them. It is further, said;; - ■ '

[177]*177“It is true that in all such cases the chancellor, or the court sitting in bankruptcy, in accordance with broad rules of equitable practice, may regard the result of such litigation as purely advisory, if circumstances should seem to require that investigation in reference thereto be made.

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The City of Boston, 182 F. 174, 1909 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8 (D. Mass. 1909).

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