Vanderstok v. Bank of America

29 Cal. App. 3d 731, 105 Cal. Rptr. 699, 1972 Cal. App. LEXIS 724
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 29, 1972
DocketCiv. No. 39963
StatusPublished

This text of 29 Cal. App. 3d 731 (Vanderstok v. Bank of America) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vanderstok v. Bank of America, 29 Cal. App. 3d 731, 105 Cal. Rptr. 699, 1972 Cal. App. LEXIS 724 (Cal. Ct. App. 1972).

Opinion

Opinion

LILLIE, J.

Plaintiff wife filed suit for divorce against Vanderstok listing certain community property; Bank of America was joined as a defendant because it held on deposit certain community funds and had been named by Vanderstok as trustee of an inter vivos revocable trust consisting of various stocks and cash, all community property. On July 23, 1969, the parties executed a marital settlement agreement listing all of the property and providing that plaintiff receive, among other properties, cash and stocks, “600 shares of Emory Common” and Vanderstok “the remainder.” An interlocutory judgment was entered July 29, 1969, incorporating by reference the agreement, and ordering the community property be divided as provided therein and the bank to dissolve the trust “pursuant to the terms of the Marital Settlement Agreement.” Because of certain administrative delays, the bank made actual distribution of the stock on November 13, 1969, distributing cash, stock, and “600 shares of Emory Common” to plaintiff, and “the remainder” to Vanderstok. No appeal from final judgment entered February 9, 1970, was taken by any party.

A year and a half later (August 3, 1971) plaintiff filed order to show cause against Vanderstok and Bank of America for an order for restitution charging in her declaration that originally there had been among various stocks in the trust 1,200 shares of Emory Common; on July 31, 1969, two days after entry of interlocutory judgment, the common stock of Emory Industries, Inc., split three-for-one creating 3,600 shares; the bank as trustee had known since March 1969 of the pendency of the stock split of which she and the attorneys were unaware; and it was intended by the marital settlement agreement that the 1,200 shares of Emory Common be divided equally but the bank distributed to her only 600 shares and to Vanderstok the remaining 3,000. The bank moved to quash the order to show cause on the ground that the trial court was without jurisdiction to hear the same because the judgment had become final, no appeal having been taken by either party; and by declaration of its counsel asserted com[734]*734pliance with the judgment and agreement on November 13, 1969. Plaintiff appeals from order granting motion to quash. Vanderstok is not a party to this appeal; order to show cause against him is still pending.

“Every court has power to compel obedience to its judgments and orders (Code Civ. Proc., § § 128, subd. 4, 177) and a court of equity retains inherent jurisdiction to oversee and enforce execution of its decrees. (Witkin, Cal. Procedure (2d ed. 1970) Judgments, § 79, p. 3240; see, e.g., Leser & Son v. Seymour, 35 Cal.2d 494, 500 [218 P.2d 536]; Green Trees Enterprises v. Palm Springs Alpine Estates, 66 Cal.2d 782, 788 [59 Cal.Rptr. 141, 427 P.2d 805]; Vallelunga v. Gomes, 102 Cal.App.2d 374, 382 [227 P.2d 550].)” (Brown v. Brown, 22 Cal.App.3d 82, 84 [99 Cal.Rptr. 311].) That portion of the interlocutory judgment commanding the bank to dissolve the trust pursuant to the provisions of the marital settlement agreement incorporated therein by reference is in the nature of a mandatory injunction inasmuch as it commands the doing of an affirmative act; a proceeding in contempt is a proper process for the enforcement or execution of an order or judgment of the court which is in the nature of an injunction. (Smith v. Smith, 18 Cal.2d 462, 464, 465 [116 P.2d 3].) It appears, therefore, that for the purpose of compelling performance of the judgment continuing jurisdiction over the subject matter and the bank exists in the trial court if there had been no compliance by the bank with the judgment.

Respondent asserts that the trial court made a preliminary finding that the bank had complied with the judgment then held it lacked jurisdiction to hold the bank in contempt for so complying; acknowledgment thereof is inherent in appellant’s contention of noncompliance. Relying on Brown v. Brown, 22 Cal.App.3d 82 [99 Cal.Rptr. 311], appellant argues that the bank by its distribution to her of only 600 shares of Emory Common failed to comply with the judgment, and it was error to grant the motion to quash. The thrust of her argument is that she and Vanderstok really intended to equally divide the stock in the trust and, in any event, inasmuch as on the date of the interlocutory judgment the stock was not yet split the order to the bank to distribute “600 shares of Emory Common” meant pre-split shares, and under section 732, Civil Code, she was entitled to the proceeds thereof, a total of 1,800 post-split shares.

Appellant saw fit to bring the matter to this court solely on the judgment roll. Thus the order granting the motion is presumed to be correct, and appellant has the burden of establishing error (Walling v. Kimball, 17 Cal.2d 364, 373 [110 P.2d 58]); such error must appear on the face of the record. (Hearst Publishing Co. v. Abounader, 196 Cal.App.2d 49, 54 [16 Cal.Rptr. 244].) Respondent represents that at the hearing on the motion to quash appellant’s witness testified that it was intended she receive equal

[735]*735shares but conceded that this intention was never communicated to Vanderstok or the bank and further, that not all of the other stock was intended to be or in fact was divided equally. However, there is in the record before us no reporter’s transcript of the oral proceedings had although it is clear from the briefs and from the declaration filed by plaintiff on her order to show cause and by the bank’s attorney on its motion to quash that a factual question of compliance by the bank was indeed presented to the trial court. Under the circumstances there is no question of the sufficiency of the evidence to support the trial court’s preliminary finding that the bank had complied with the judgment (Rodriguez v. Barnett, 52 Cal.2d 154, 157 [338 P.2d 907]; Haskins v. Holmes, 252 Cal.App.2d 580, 582 [60 Cal.Rptr. 659]) for the evidence is conclusively presumed to be sufficient to sustain it. (Gin S. Chow v. City of Santa Barbara, 217 Cal. 673, 680 [22 P.2d 5]; Hunt v. Plavsa, 103 Cal.App.2d 222, 224 [229 P.2d 482]; Kompf v. Morrison, 73 Cal.App.2d 284, 286 [166 P.2d 350].) Thus, the present inquiry is limited to a consideration whether the finding supports the order (Gin S. Chow v. City of Santa Barbara, 217 Cal. 673, 680, supra; Noble v. Beach, 21 Cal.2d 91, 98-99 [130 P.2d 426]), and the finding is to receive such construction as will uphold rather than defeat it. (Gin S. Chow v. City of Santa Barbara, 217 Cal. 673, 680, supra; Hearst Publishing Co. v. Abounader, 196 Cal.App.2d 49, 55 [16 Cal.Rptr.

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Related

Rodriguez v. Barnett
338 P.2d 907 (California Supreme Court, 1959)
Lesser & Son v. Seymour
218 P.2d 536 (California Supreme Court, 1950)
Hunt v. Plavsa
229 P.2d 482 (California Court of Appeal, 1951)
Green Trees Enterprises, Inc. v. Palm Springs Alpine Estates, Inc.
427 P.2d 805 (California Supreme Court, 1967)
Vallelunga v. Gomes
227 P.2d 550 (California Court of Appeal, 1951)
Walling v. Kimball
110 P.2d 58 (California Supreme Court, 1941)
Smith v. Smith
116 P.2d 3 (California Supreme Court, 1941)
Brown v. Brown
22 Cal. App. 3d 82 (California Court of Appeal, 1971)
Haskins v. Holmes
252 Cal. App. 2d 580 (California Court of Appeal, 1967)
Grant v. Superior Court
214 Cal. App. 2d 15 (California Court of Appeal, 1963)
Hearst Publishing Co. v. Abounader
196 Cal. App. 2d 49 (California Court of Appeal, 1961)
Roberts v. Roberts
241 Cal. App. 2d 93 (California Court of Appeal, 1966)
Noble v. Beach
130 P.2d 426 (California Supreme Court, 1942)
Kompf v. Morrison
166 P.2d 350 (California Court of Appeal, 1946)
Gin S. Chow v. City of Santa Barbara
22 F.2d 5 (California Supreme Court, 1933)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
29 Cal. App. 3d 731, 105 Cal. Rptr. 699, 1972 Cal. App. LEXIS 724, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vanderstok-v-bank-of-america-calctapp-1972.