White v. Christy

34 S.E. 756, 47 W. Va. 16, 1899 W. Va. LEXIS 119
CourtWest Virginia Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 18, 1899
StatusPublished

This text of 34 S.E. 756 (White v. Christy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering West Virginia Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
White v. Christy, 34 S.E. 756, 47 W. Va. 16, 1899 W. Va. LEXIS 119 (W. Va. 1899).

Opinion

McWhorter, Judge:

This was a proceeding on notice, brought by George W. White before Justice W. S. Kelley, in Randolph Coanty, to [17]*17quasb an execution issued by said justice in favor of N. Christy, trustee, against George W. White, Caleb White, and Job W. Parsons, founded on a judgment rendered therefor by James Coberly, late justice, for certain personal property, or its alternative value of two hundred dollars. The execution was issued February 26, 1898, and returnable within sixty days. The notice in writing is as follows:

“To N. Christy, Trustee: Take notice that on the 8th day of April, 1898, at 8 o’clock a. m. of said day at the office of W. S. Kelley, a justice of the peace in the town of Elkins, in Leadsville district, Randolph County, West Virginia, before said justice, I will make a motion to quash an execution and writ of possession issued by said justice on the 26th day of February, 1898, for $200 and costs, in the case of N. Christv. trustee, against Geo. W. White, Caleb White, and Job W. Parsons, and now in the hands of E. E. Taylor, a constable of said county, for execution, upon the following grounds, towit: That said execution and writ of possession were issued contrary to law; that the said justice had no authority to issue the same, and that said suit was taken to the circuit court on appeal from a judgment of James Coberly, quashing a former execution and writ of possession issued in said suit, and by the circuit court affirmed; that the judgment upon which said execution and writ were based was a nullity, because the said Geo. W. White complied with the judgment or order in said suit before it was appealed as aforesaid, and before anv writ was issued upon said judgment; because they (the said defendants) have fully complied -with every order of the -court in said cause; and for other reasons. Geo. W. White, by Counsel.”

“Return: Served the within notice on the within named -N. Christy, trustee, by delivering to him in person, in Tucker county, West Va., a true copy thereof this, the 29th day of March, 1898. Chas. Campbell, C. T. C.”

“State of West Virginia, Tucker Co., to wit: Personally appeared before me, B., Parsons, a notary public in and for said county of Tucker, Charles Campbell, who, being by me first duly sworn, deposes and sa3^s that he served the within notice on the within named N. Christy, trustee, as shown by the above return made by him. Chas. Campbell, C. T. C.

[18]*18“Sworn and subscribed to before me this-day of April, 1898. JB. Parsons, Notary Public.”

On the 8th day of April the parties appeared, both in person and by attorneys, and it appears from the record that plaintiff N. Christy moved to quash the notice upon the “grounds that the beneficiary under the trust was not a party in the notice, and that said N. Christy had appeared for the purpose only; but before the justice passed upon said motion, and after it was argued, the attorney for N. Christy, then made a second motion that the service was defective. The motion was argued by counsel, and the justice sustained the motion that the constable had not sworn to the service on said notice. Therefore George W. White asked the continuance of the cause until he could get an amended return by the constable on the said notice,” —and by agreement the case was continued to May2, 1898, on which day the record shows the following proceedings were had: “May 2d, 1898. This day came the plaintiff, G. W. White, by counsel, and N. Christy, trustee, in person and by counsel, at 9 o’clock a. m., announced himself ready for trial, and the counsel for the plaintiff, G. W. White, having been present for about one-half hour previous to and up to the time the said motion was made, and, immediatelv upon said motion being made, counsel for White arose to address the justice, when defendant N. Christy’s attorney still pressed for the case to be dismissed upon the grounds that he had waited one hour, and plaintiff White’s counsel, and not himself, was ready for trial; whereupon the justice overruled said motion for the reason that the plaintiff had been present by atty. for some time previous, and announced himself ready for trial as soon as Christy’s atty. stopped talking in making a motion to quash the notice, because the notary who took the affidavit of constable didn’t use his official seal, and because he didn’t give the precise date of month in affidavit. Upon consideration the justice overruled said motion, whereupon counsel for White introduced his witnesses, and, after hearing the testimony, and considered, the justice quashed the execution issued on the 26th day of February, 1898, and E. E. Taylor, C. R. C., wh,o levied said execution, is ordered to release the property levied on in said execution. ” From which judgment the plaintiff Christy appealed to the cir [19]*19cuit court of said county, and on the 9th day of May, 1898, the following proceedings were had in said case in the circuit court; “This cause came on this day to be heard upon motion of said Christy, trustee, to reverse and dismiss the judgment of Justice Kelley, rendered herein on the 2d day of May, 1898, on account of defective notice and return thereon, and for the reason that said justice tried this cause and rendered a judgment therein quashing execution issued on the 26th day of February, 1898, after 9 o’clock a. m. (the hour at which said trial was set was 8 o’clock a. m.), and insisting that said justice had no jurisdiction after that hour to try said motion or cause; and that the said Christy, trustee, demanded a dismissal of this cause, and of the motion contained in said notice at nine o’clock a. m., which the justice refused, and after that time, and without the consent of the said Christy, trustee, and in his absence, rendered said judgment quashing said execution, to which motions counsel for Geo. W. White appeared; and, after hearing the argument of counsel on said motion on both sides, and maturely considering thereof, the court is of opinion that the motion of the said Christy to reverse the said judgment of the justice should be sustained. It is therefore ordered that said judgment of W. S. Kelley, rendered on the 2d day of May, 1898, at his office in the town of Elkins, be, and the same is hereby, reversed, and set aside, as being rendered without jurisdiction, and that the said N. Christy, trustee, recover from the defendant bis costs in and about his defense herein expended.” And from which judgment plaintiff in error procured from this Court a writ of error, alleging that it was error to hear and determine said motion in the absence of all proof, and in assuming certain facts existed manifestly contrary to exhibits filed, and especially to transcript from docket of judgment by said justice, and in sustaining said motion to reverse said judgment for want of jurisdiction by said justice to enter the same. The only objection raised to the notice was that the beneficiary under a trust deed was not made a party to it. The judgment was in favor of the trustee, who held the legal title to the property sued for in the action at law, and the cestui que trust could not be made a party in such proceeding. The notice sufficiently describes the execution to be quashed, and the party had [20]*20full ten days’ notice prior to the day set for hearing before the justice, and there is no defect in the service. “The only question to be considered,” as stated by defendant in error in his brief, “is whether there was any such error committed by the justice as justified the circuit court in reversing his judgment;” and he cites Freestone Co. v. Parrish, 34 W. Va. 652, (12 S. E.

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Related

Buena Vista Freestone Co. v. Parrish
12 S.E. 817 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1891)

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Bluebook (online)
34 S.E. 756, 47 W. Va. 16, 1899 W. Va. LEXIS 119, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/white-v-christy-wva-1899.