Wieler v. Diver

134 N.E. 495, 78 Ind. App. 26, 1922 Ind. App. LEXIS 71
Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided March 15, 1922·No. No. 11,053·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

Nichols, J.

— This was an action by the appellee against appellant to recover a judgment in the Gibson Circuit Court, upon an alleged judgment rendered in vacation before the clerk of the circuit court of Wabash county, Illinois, on cognovit.

There was a trial 'with special findings, and conclusions thereon in favor of appellee upon which judgment was rendered against appellant.

[27] Appellant assigns in this court error of the trial court in overruling his motion for a new trial, and in stating its conclusions of law.

The special findings and conclusions are in substance as follows:

On January 4, 1919, letters of administration upon the estate of John Diver, deceased, were duly issued by the judge of the probate court of Lawrence county, Illinois, to J. E. Diver and Charles L. Diver. That the following section of the statutes of Illinois in relation to practice and procedure in courts of record is now in force and effect, to wit: “Section 88. Any person for a debt bona fide may confes°s judgment by himself or attorney duly authorized, either in term or vacation, without process. Judgments entered in vacation have like force and effect, and, from the date thereof become liens in like manner and extent as judgments entered in term.”

On January 31, 1920, and continuously for thirty-two years immediately prior thereto, appellant was a resident of Indiana, and not a resident of Illinois. On said January 31, 1920, judgment was entered on the records of the circuit court of Wabash county, Illinois, which was in substance as follows:

On said January 31,1920, which was in vacation after the November term of the Wabash Circuit Court of Illinois, appellee appeared before Elmer Stoltz, the clerk of said court and filed his plea of trespass on the case, together with his promissory note executed by appellant, Wieler. There was an appearance by one Allison, attorney, who filed his warrant of attorney, executed by appellant authorizing him to appear in any court of record in behalf of appellant with a waiver of service, and to confess judgment in favor of appellant for the amount due upon the promissory note annexed to said warrant of attorney, and thereupon judgment was en[28] tered upon the note against appellant including attorney’s fees for $598.99 and costs, which judgment was signed by Elmer Stoltz, clerk. ' The record shows an agreement to release all errors in entering the judgment, or in issuing execution thereon. The terms “cognovit” and “warrant of attorney” are sometimes, as here, used interchangeably but there is a distinction between them which we do not need to discuss for the purposes of this decision.

Upon the finding of facts the court stated its conclusion of law that appellee is entitled to judgment against appellant in the sum of $621.67 and costs. The failure of the court to find that the note involved was executed in Illinois and was therefore an Illinois contract was a finding against appellee on that question.

The supreme court, in Irose v. Balla (1914), 181 Ind. 491, 104 N. E. 851, after stating that it is the acknowledged public policy of this state not to recognize powers of confession in promissory notes says that: “So unusual authority .as that of a warrant to confess judgment in a'foreign jurisdiction, ought not to be extended by implication or inference, when the only question is as to the extent of the authority, and to question that authority is not in our judgment doing violence to the full faith and credit clause of the Federal Constitution, or the laws of the United States, or of the state of Illinois.” Other authorities sustaining this rule are Rasmussen v. Hagler (1906), 15 N. D. 542, 108 N. W. 541; Raymor v. Michigan Trust Co. (1911), 165 Mich. 259, 130 N. W. 594.

1. The authority of the warrant of attorney here involved authorized the attorney to appear in any court of record and confess judgment, but the record shows that the proceeding was had and judgment ■ rendered in vacation, before Elmer Stoltz, clerV This court has held in Citizens State Bank v. Read [29] (1910), 45 Ind. App. 158, 90 N. E. 492, that a record which shows judgment rendered by the clerk of the court does not sustain the allegation of a judgment rendered by a court of general jurisdiction. To the same effect, see Pond v. Simons (1896), 17 Ind. App. 84, 45 N. E. 48, 46 N. E. 153. Following the same principle, we hold that an authority in a warrant of attorney to confess judgment in any court of record is not authority to confess judgment before a clerk of a court in vacation.

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Wieler v. Diver, 134 N.E. 495, 78 Ind. App. 26, 1922 Ind. App. LEXIS 71 (Ind. Ct. App. 1922).

134 N.E. 495 (Wieler v. Diver) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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