Whitney v. Nolan

6 N.E.2d 386, 296 Mass. 419, 1937 Mass. LEXIS 681
CourtMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
DecidedJanuary 25, 1937
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 6 N.E.2d 386 (Whitney v. Nolan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Whitney v. Nolan, 6 N.E.2d 386, 296 Mass. 419, 1937 Mass. LEXIS 681 (Mass. 1937).

Opinion

Pierce, J.

This is a suit in equity. It is before this court on an appeal by the defendant from an interlocutory decree of the Superior Court confirming the master’s report and overruling the defendant’s objections thereto, and from the final decree of said court determining the defendant’s indebtedness to the plaintiffs, requiring the indorsement by the defendant of certain stock certificates held by the plaintiffs, providing for the sale and crediting of the proceeds thereof, requiring the defendant to indorse and deliver to the plaintiffs certain shares of stock received by her as a stock dividend upon the shares of Coca Cola stock held by the plaintiffs, requiring the plaintiffs to sell said Coca Cola stock and credit the defendant with the proceeds thereof, providing for the issuance of execution, and dismissing the defendant’s answer in the nature of a cross bill.

The master’s report discloses in substance the following facts: The plaintiffs for many years have been engaged in business as stockbrokers at Boston, Massachusetts, under the name of Whitney and Elwell. In February, 1929, the defendant came to the office of the plaintiffs and had a talk with one Luce, employed by the plaintiffs as a “cus[421]*421tomer’s man,” with reference to opening a margin account. The defendant did not deal with anyone else at Whitney and Elwell’s until her account was closed out, except on one occasion when she brought in some securities and left them with one of the cashiers. Luce agreed with the defendant that she could open a margin account if she brought in some collateral as margin. On February 8, 1929, she brought in certificates for five common stocks and gave orders for the purchase of certain stocks. At no time did she put up any money as margin. On February 11, 1929, she ordered the purchase of further stock and was told she must deposit more margin if she wished to do further trading, and she promised to do so. The stock was purchased for her account as ordered, and thereafter, on February 21, 1929, the defendant brought into the plaintiffs’ office unindorsed certificates of stock and delivered them to the assistant cashier, with the statement that they were to be kept for her. Two employees of the plaintiffs, the stock clerk and the man who took them in, knew at some time that the certificates were unindorsed. Upon delivering the certificates to the assistant cashier a receipt marked “Not endorsed” was given the defendant. On the bottom of the receipt the following statement was printed: “In accordance with the usual custom we reserve the right to transfer, sell, pledge or use the above or any stocks in any way without further notice.” Occasionally, but not often, stocks were delivered to Whitney and Elwell by a customer for safe keeping. On those occasions the same form of receipt would be used, but the word “safekeeping” would be written on the receipt. The defendant at no time objected to this form of receipt. When Luce learned the certificates were not indorsed he requested the defendant to come in, and, in his absence, she came in and indorsed some of them, but there were others which were not indorsed. Luce and others in the plaintiffs’ office supposed that all the certificates were indorsed and on that basis treated them as margin for the defendant’s account.

From February 8, 1929, to October 15, 1929, the plaintiffs made a great many purchases and sales for the de[422]*422fendant. Whenever stocks were bought or sold for the defendant she received by mail a confirmation sheet on the bottom of which was printed: “(c) That any and all securities held by us on the account of the customer, either alone or with other securities and up to and for more than the amounts for which said securities are held by us may be pledged, repledged or loaned, with unlimited power to repledge, to other customers of ours or their agents or to other brokers, and securities so pledged, repledged or loaned are considered within our control.” “(e) That without call or notice to the customer we may close out the whole or any part of the customer’s open account at public or private sale by buying or selling from or to ourselves or others.”

Each month the defendant received a statement of her account showing the transactions of the previous month, and showing the stocks which were being carried in her account. Those stocks included the stocks brought in on February 21, unless previously sold as hereinafter set forth. The defendant never objected to those stocks being carried in her account. After February 21, 1929, the plaintiffs from time to time sold upon the defendant’s order some of the defendant’s stocks represented by unindorsed certificates, and credited the proceeds, without objection by the defendant, on her margin account. The plaintiffs completed such sales by delivering to the buyers other stock in the hands of the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs did not discover until after the closing out of the defendant’s account that the various certificates were unindorsed.

On October 29 and October 30, 1929, the defendant’s account being undermargined and she having stated her inability to furnish' more margin, the plaintiffs sold out her securities. As to the unindorsed certificates which they still held, the plaintiffs, being unable to make delivery upon sales of those stocks, purchased other stock on their own stock account, or otherwise, and charged the defendant’s account.

The master found, so far as it was a question of fact, that the shares of unindorsed stock now in the hands of [423]*423the plaintiffs “were deposited with the plaintiffs by the defendant and held by them with her knowledge and consent as collateral or margin for her margin account,” and that the plaintiffs before bringing this suit requested the defendant to indorse the certificates but she declined to do so.

This suit in equity was brought on February 4, 1930. Since the bringing of this suit the defendant has received cash dividends upon the unindorsed certificates amounting to $286.30, and on December 10, 1935, received a three hundred per cent stock dividend from the Coca Cola Company; that is, a stock dividend of nine shares of Coca Cola Company Stock upon three shares of Coca Cola Company stock represented by an unindorsed certificate held by the plaintiffs. On April 4, 1936, the plaintiffs made an unsuccessful demand on the defendant to turn over the stock dividend. The master found that the indebtedness of the defendant to the plaintiffs, including interest, was $4,858.61.

The defendant’s first objection to the master’s report relates to his finding that Luce and others in the plaintiffs’ office supposed that all the certificates deposited by the defendant had been indorsed by her. The defendant contends that such a finding is inconsistent with the finding that two of the plaintiffs’ employees knew at some time that the certificates were unindorsed. That was all that was found with reference to any knowledge of employees of the plaintiffs that the certificates were unindorsed. These findings cannot be said to be inconsistent and contradictory upon a material issue.

The defendant’s second objection is to a finding of the master setting forth the plaintiffs’ practice in making delivery of certificates after sales of stock. That finding was merely descriptive of the probable course of the plaintiffs’ business in a purely suppositional case, and must have been so considered by the master and the judge. The evidence is not reported, and it cannot be fairly said that the illustration was not warranted on the evidence.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
6 N.E.2d 386, 296 Mass. 419, 1937 Mass. LEXIS 681, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/whitney-v-nolan-mass-1937.