United States & Mexican Trust Co. v. Austin

176 S.W. 87, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 503
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 15, 1915
DocketNo. 436.
StatusPublished

This text of 176 S.W. 87 (United States & Mexican Trust Co. v. Austin) 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
United States & Mexican Trust Co. v. Austin, 176 S.W. 87, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 503 (Tex. Ct. App. 1915).

Opinion

WALTHxlLL, J.

This suit was brought by appellee against appellant on the following contract:

“W. L. Austin v. United States & Mexican Trust Company. No. 1027.
“In District. Court, Pecos County, Texas.
“In compromise and settlement of the causes of action sued upon by plaintiff herein, it is hereby agreed as follows:
“(1) The defendant, the United States & Mexican Trust Company, shall within thirty (30) days from this date pay to the plaintiff, W. L. Austin, in cash, the sum of seven hundred and thirty dollars in full settlement of the commissions claimed by plaintiff herein on account of sales to J. P. Ash, R. B. Simmons, Mrs. Elizabeth M. Durkee, or Rodney Durkee, and H. D. Thompson.
“ (2) The defendant, the United States & Mexican Trust Company, agrees to immediately proceed to the collection of the remainder of the purchase price of the land described in said petition as having been sold to Jennie Brown and Mary Brown, and particularly to second annual payment upon such purchases now due, and in event of the collection of such second annual payment, or the taking by the United States & Mexican Trust Company of adequate security therefor, the trust company shall at once pay to the plaintiff herein, in cash, one thousand dollars, being the remainder of his commission on account of sale to said Jennie Brown and Mary Brown. It is further agreed that if within sixty days from this date the defendant trust company has not secured from the said Jennie Brown and Mary Brown the payment in cash of the second annual payment due upon said purchase, or the securing of the same by adequate security, that the plaintiff shall have the right to proceed on behalf of the trust company to collect said second annual payment or the remainder due of said purchase price and upon such collection or upon the taking by'said plaintiff for the trust company of adequate security for said second payment, the trust company shall pay in cash to the plaintiff the commission remaining due as aforesaid, and shall also pay to said Austin 10 per cent, of amounts collected by him or which, through his efforts, shall be adequately secured to the trust company in full satisfaction and settlement of all claims of said plaintiff for services rendered in and about the making of such collection.
“(3) It is further ag'reed that the United States & Mexican Trust Company shall proceed at once for the collection of the second annual payment due upon the Randall sale mentioned in the pleadings herein, and upon the receipt of the second annual payment shall at once pay in cash to the plaintiff the sum of two hundred and seventy and 33/ioo ($270.25) dollars, balance due upon said commission, and it *88 is further agreed that in the event the United States & Mexican Trust Company shall not make collection of said second annual payment within sixty days from this date, that plaintiff may, if he desired, proceed to secure collection of said second annual payment, and may arrange for the payment by said purchaser to him of the sum of two hundred and seventy and 25/ioo (¡5270.25) dollars and the payment of the remainder of said second annual payment to the trust company.
“(4) The plaintiff herein acknowledges full receipt, satisfaction and settlement of any claims for salary sued for herein, and the defendant, the United States & Mexican Trust Company, acknowledges full receipt, settlement, and satisfaction of any claim on its part for expense money advanced or paid to said plaintiff.
“(5) The defendant, the United States & Mexican Trust Company, acknowledges full receipt, settlement, and satisfaction of any claim on its part for expenses or expense money advanced or paid to said plaintiff.
“Dated October 8, 1913.”

The contract was signed by the respective parties by counsel. The case was tried before the court and jury and submitted by the court on special issues, and upon the answers of the jury, judgment was rendered, for appellee for $2,007.25, to be reduced by a garnishment judgment of $261.65, if discharged in 60 days. •

Appellant’s first assignment of error and the proposition thereunder claim error in overruling its motion to set aside the verdict on the ground that the evidence wholly fails to show that it could have collected the Jennie and Mary Brown notes and the Randall notes, mentioned in the agreement quoted. The answer of the jury to the second issue was that the appellant did not use proper diligence in the collection of the notes, and the answer to the third issue was that, if the appellant had used proper diligence, it could have collected the notes in cash. Each of these findings has evidence to support it, and the court was not in error in refusing to set the verdict aside on the ground assigned. The assignment is overruled.

Appellant’s second assignment complains of the fourth paragraph of the court’s charge as being contradictory, uncertain, and ambiguous, and as authorizing the jury to find for the plaintiff, even though they should believe from the evidence that a sale of the lands in Pecos county under the vendor’s lien or deed of trust would have resulted in the retaking of said lands by the defendant for a price less than the amount shown to be due on said purchase-money notes.

[1] Appellee objects to a consideration of this assignment, for the reason that it complains of error in the charge, and does not refer to any bill of exception as having been taken to the charge. The record shows that appellant objected to the charge on the ground stated in the assignment, and made said objection one ground for a new trial in its motion, but the record does not show that the objection to the charge was presented to the court before the charge was.read to the jury, or that any action was taken by the court on the objection made, or that any bill of exception was taken to any action of the court with respect to said portion of the charge, as required by the act of the Legislature approved March 29, 1913 (Gen. Laws 1913, p. 113). Heath v. Huffhines, 168 S. W. 974; Stephenville, N. & S. T. Ry. Co. et al. v. Wheat, 173 S. W. 974. In the case of I. & G. N. Ry. Co. v. Tate, 170 S. W. 1061, the Third Court of Appeals said:

“There is in the record what purports to be ‘objections of defendant to the court’s charge.’ But this cannot be treated as a bill of exceptions. It does not appear to have been presented to the judge trying the case, * * * and there is nothing in the record to show that the court’s attention was ever called to such objections.” Railway Co. v. Battle, 169 S. W. 1048; Railway Co. v. Feldman, 170 S. W. 133.

For reasons stated, the second assignment, cannot be considered.

Appellant’s third assignment of error complains that the court refused to submit to the jury its special charge No. 4, but appellant, refers us to no bill of exception taken to the action of the court in refusing to give the charge, and, for reasons stated above, the assignment cannot be considered.

[2] Appellant’s fourth assignment is in words following:

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Related

International G. N. R. Co. v. Tate
170 S.W. 1061 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1914)
International & G. N. Ry. Co. v. Feldman
170 S.W. 133 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1914)
Gulf, C. & S. F. Ry. Co. v. Battle
169 S.W. 1048 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1914)
Stephenville, N. & S. T. Ry. Co. v. Wheat
173 S.W. 974 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1914)
Heath v. Huffhines
168 S.W. 974 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1914)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
176 S.W. 87, 1915 Tex. App. LEXIS 503, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-mexican-trust-co-v-austin-texapp-1915.