Ward v. Coleman

170 P.2d 113, 170 Okla. 201
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 30, 1934
Docket23585
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 170 P.2d 113 (Ward v. Coleman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ward v. Coleman, 170 P.2d 113, 170 Okla. 201 (Okla. 1934).

Opinion

SWINDALL, J.

This action was brought by defendant in error, Mackey Coleman (formerly Mackey Ward), as plaintiff, against Silsainey Ward (formerly Silsainey Johnson), the plaintiff in error herein, as the defendant, in the district court of Mc: Curtain county. We will herein refer to the parties in accordance with their designation in the district court. The trial court treated this action as a suit for a balance due on a judgment, and the parties apparently tried the case and have briefed it on that theory. The amended petition on which the case proceeded to trial sets up that in April, 1928, a former case was filed by the same plaintiff, who was then Mackey Ward, against this defendant, who was then Silsainey Johnson, asking judgment for $50,-000 against defendant for the alienation of the affections of plaintiff’s husband, Reed Ward; that,'prior to the filing of that case, Mackey AVard had obtained judgment against her husband, Reed Ward, for $40 per month separate maintenance and $125 attorney’s fee, and, on a cross-petition, the court had refused to grant a divorce to Reed AArard; that, after the filing of the alienation of affections suit, the defendant, Silsainey Johnson, now AVard, proposed, and all the parties agreed upon a settlement by the terms of which Silsainey Johnson was to pay plaintiff the sum of $10,000, for which sum she would consent to have judgment rendered against her in said case; that, as a condition precedent to entry of such judgment by consent and the payment thereof, the plaintiff, Mackey Ward, now Coleman, was to release her judgment against Reed Ward for separate maintenance and attorney’s fee, and herself file suit and obtain a divorce from the said Reed Ward; that, in accordance with the terms of said agreement, the plaintiff did file suit for divorce and obtain a divorce from Reed AVard, and did release, and cause to be canceled of record, her judgment against Reed Ward for separate maintenance and attorney’s fees, and defendant did go into the district court of McCurtain county, in the alienation of affections suit, and agree to the entry of judgment against her for $10,000, and such judgment was entered on the 7th day of June, 1929, in case No. 6954; that defendant is a full-blood Choctaw Indian, and, as such, her money and property are restricted and not subject to execution; that the Bureau of Indian Affairs authorized the payment of this judgment from her restricted funds and issued its check against this defendant's funds, payable to said defendant to be used in satisfying said judgment, but defendant refused to indorse said check so that it could be used in the payment of said judgment, and would only agree to the payment of $6,000 from her funds on said judgment'; that, after a good deal of negotiation, plaintiff and her attorneys of record, on February 7, 1931, accepted payment of $6.000 instead of the full amount of said judgment, which, at that time, amounted to $11,004.35, including the accrued interests and costs, and that, because of defendant’s breach of her contract to pay the judgment, plaintiff was damaged in the sum of $5,004.35.

The. defendant filed a general demurrer to the petition, which demurrer was over *203 ruled, but no exception saved. Defendant’s amended answer consists of a general denial and allegations that prior to the institution of this suit the judgment set out in plaintiff’s petition was paid in full, and that plaintiff and her attorneys of record had executed in writing a release, discharge, and satisfaction of said judgment, and attached. as an exhibit, a copy of the satisfaction of said judgment, which, on its face, purports to be “in full settlement and satisfaction” of said judgment “for value' received,” but not naming the specific amount paid thereon. The release is signed and acknowledged by plaintiff before a notary public and is signed by her attorneys of record. Plaintiff’s reply was an unverified general denial.

Upon a trial before the court, judgment was rendered for plaintiff for the amount prayed for, and defendant has appealed to this court.

Counsel for defendant in their brief group three assignments of error under their first proposition: (1) Error in overruling defendant's demurrer to plaintiff’s amended petition; (2) error in overruling defendant’s objection to the introduction of evidence by plaintiff; and (3) error in refusing to dismiss plaintiff’s action. All of these objections go to the sufficiency of plaintiff’s petition to state a cause of action. At the opening of the trial, when plaintiff offered her first witness, defendant objected to the introduction of any testimony and moved the court to dismiss said cause for six separate reasons, as follows:

“First: That said petition does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action in favor of plaintiff and against defendant :
“Second: That said petition does not state facts sufficient to state a cause of action upon a judgment;
“Third: That the amended petition of plaintiff pleads facts and circumstances showing that the original judgment entered in cause No. 6954 was rendered against the defendant, Silsainey Johnson, as the result of fraud and collusion between the said Mackey Ward, W. T. Williams, J. N. Fortner and Silsainey Johnson, and that said petitioji pleads facts showing that the saiu Mackey Ward was a partaker in said fraud and collusion; that said judgment so rendered in said cause No. 6954 is the sole and only basis or foundation for this cause of action;
“Fourth: That said amended petition sets forth facts which preclude this court from granting any relief to any of the parties concerned in said judgment rendered in cause No. 6954, or any of the parties to this action;
“Fifth: That this action cannot be maintained until said written satisfaction ■ and release of said judgment, executed and delivered by the plaintiffs in this cause to the defendant, is canceled by a court of competent jurisdiction;
.“Sixth: That the plaintiffs, J. N. Fortner and W. T. Williams, nor either of them, own any interest or right in or to said judgment such as will entitle them to maintain an action thereon.”

The trial court overruled the objection and motion as to the third and fifth paragraphs, to which the defendant duly excepted, and the court sustained the objection as to the sixth paragraph. No ruling seems to have been made on the other paragraphs and no exception was taken by the defendant to the failure or refusal of the court to act thereon; therefore, no question of law is presented to this court for review in connection with paragraphs numbered 1, 2, and 4 of the above objection and motion. Cushing Gasoline Co. v. Hutchins, 93 Okla. 13, 219 P. 408.

The record discloses that no exception was saved to the overruling of defendant’s demurrer to plaintiff’s amended petition, and therefore the action of the court in that respect is not subject to review here. Edwards v. Edwards, 108 Okla. 93, 233 P. 477; McKee v. Dickerson, 122 Okla. 240, 254 P. 57; Todd v. Webb, 134 Okla. 107, 272 P. 380. That leaves for our consideration the ruling of the court on paragraphs 3 and 5 of defendant’s objection to the introduction of evidence by the plaintiff.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
170 P.2d 113, 170 Okla. 201, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ward-v-coleman-okla-1934.