West Michigan Savings Bank v. Dater

205 N.W. 113, 232 Mich. 409, 1925 Mich. LEXIS 869
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 1, 1925
DocketDocket No. 19.
StatusPublished

This text of 205 N.W. 113 (West Michigan Savings Bank v. Dater) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
West Michigan Savings Bank v. Dater, 205 N.W. 113, 232 Mich. 409, 1925 Mich. LEXIS 869 (Mich. 1925).

Opinion

Moore, J.

This suit is brought to recover money which the defendant received from the sale of certain canned goods. The plaintiff bank claims that it had two chattel mortgages on the goods sold, and that the defendant wrongfully converted the proceeds of the sale. The defendant denies that the canned stock in question ever was subject to 1 the lien of plaintiff’s *410 mortgages. On August 28, 1920, William Traver, who was then engaged in the canning business at Hartford, Michigan, was indebted to the plaintiff in the sum of $6,000, and gave a mortgage to the bank, the material parts of which read:

“All the stock of canned goods, including strawberries, raspberries, cherries, peaches, plums, pears and apples, and stock of cans and sugar, and it is an express condition of this mortgage that said first party will at all times during the life of this mortgage keep at least a stock of twelve thousand dollars ($12,000.00)- in value of above described goods on hand as security for this loan, and in case of failure to do so this mortgage will become immediately due and payable. * * * . Said goods and chattels now remaining and continuing in the possession of the said party of the first part, in canning factory and warehouse at Hartford, Michigan.”

On October 7, 1920, the said Traver gave to the plaintiff another chattel mortgage. This mortgage reads in part:

. “All the stock of the canned goods, cans and boxes, contained in the factory and warehouse of said first party, and situate north of the “Fruit Belt” line railroad, in the village of Hartford, Van Burén county, Michigan.
“(Said first party agrees to keep on hand at all times during the life of this mortgage a total stock of canned goods of at least eight thousand dollars ($8,000) and in case of failure to do so this mortgage and the note secured thereby shall become immediately due and payable, notwithstanding the time of payment shall not have arrived.) * * *
“Said goods and chattels now remaining and continuing in the possession of the said party of the first part, in the village of Hartford, Michigan.”

In November, 1920, Mr. Traver’s creditors elected Mr. Hater trustee of the property and, business of Mr. Traver. On December 7, 1921, while Mr. Hater was acting as trustee, goods were shipped from the *411 factory at Hartford to C. F. Smith of Detroit, of the net value of $1,156.39, which amount was paid to Mr. Dater. The bank claimed this money. Mr. Dater declined to pay it to them, and this litigation followed.

At the close of the plaintiff’s testimony the defendant asked for a directed verdict because’—

“All the evidence introduced for and on behalf of the plaintiff fails to show that the money that was received by Mr. Dater, the defendant, was from the goods that were covered by their chattel mortgages. There is nothing at all to connect the goods sold by Mr. Dater with the chattel mortgage in any way. * * *
“There is nothing to show where those goods were taken from, that there was ever a chattel mortgage on them, or that they are in any way connected with the plaintiff’s chattel mortgage. And unless there is some evidence along that line the defendant cannot be held.”

The motion was overruled. At the close of all the testimony the motion was renewed with the further reason stated

“that this matter alleged and set forth in plaintiff’s declaration was fully adjudicated and determined in the court of W. J. Banyon, referee in bankruptcy in the matter of William M. Traver, a bankrupt, now pending in the United States district court for the western district of Michigan.”

This motion was overruled.

The trial judge after stating the claims of the parties charged the jury in part as follows:

“As I view the case here, if these goods were shipped from that Hartford factory were a part of the stock of goods that were covered by that chattel mortgage— in other words, if they were goods that were in that factory when that chattel mortgage was given, and were the remaining part of that stock of goods, then this plaintiff is entitled to recover. If, however, as is claimed by this defendant, the goods that were *412 shipped from that Hartford factory, aiid that this check was given for ultimately, were goods that were brought over there after the fire in that other factory, then I charge you, gentlemen of the jury, that they were not covered by that chattel mortgage, and the plaintiff is not entitled to recover.
“This is the issue for you to determine — Where did those goods come from? Were they a part of the stock of goods that were mortgaged by Mr. Traver to that 'bank, or were they, as claimed by defendant, goods that were later brought over there from the Paw Paw factory? If they were a part of the original stock of goods, then I charge you that this plaintiff is entitled to recover. If on the other hand, they were brought over, as claimed by the defendant, from the Paw Paw factory, then I charge you as a matter of law, they were not covered by the chattel mortgage, and the plaintiff is not entitled to recover. That is the sole issue for you men to decide in this controversy.
“You are instructed that the defendant, Dater, stands in the same position in regard to this action as would William M. Traver, had he disposed of these goods in his individual capacity, and not by a trustee. Therefore Mr. Dater is not to be considered in the light of a third person in this transaction; and he has no further defense than could or might have been made by the said Traver. In other words, if Traver could not have legally disposed of these goods v and converted the money to his own use, then neither could the said Dater.”

The jury found a verdict for the defendant. The case is brought into this court by writ of error.

The counsel for plaintiff make several claims, but the important one is as follows, we quote from the brief:

“It is the claim of the appellant that under these two mortgages whatever canned goods came into the Hartford factory after these mortgages were given became automatically a part of the Traver stock of canned goods and were covered by the terms of the bank’s mortgages, and when Mr. Dater, as trustee for the creditors, sold $1,156.39 worth of canned goods out *413 of that factory to Smith of Detroit on December 7, 1921, he sold property which belonged to the plaintiff bank and was liable to the bank for the proceeds thereof. * * *
“From whatever source he obtained the replenishing stock, when he placed that stock in the factory at Hartford after the execution of these mortgages, such additional stock automatically became a part of plaintiff’s mortgaged goods, and the plaintiff was entitled under the law and under the facts to the proceeds received by Trustee Dater from the sale thereofciting Greenaway v. Fuller, 47 Mich. 557; Eddy

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Greenaway v. Fuller
11 N.W. 384 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1882)
Eddy v. McCall
39 N.W. 734 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1888)
Dunn v. Michigan Club
73 N.W. 386 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1897)
Ferguson v. Wilson
80 N.W. 1006 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1899)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
205 N.W. 113, 232 Mich. 409, 1925 Mich. LEXIS 869, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/west-michigan-savings-bank-v-dater-mich-1925.