Wyeth v. Eldin

133 N.E. 38, 78 Ind. App. 401, 1921 Ind. App. LEXIS 227
Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided December 7, 1921·No. No. 11,057·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

Batman, J.

— This appeal involves a judgment that appellants take nothing by their complaint, that a certain restraining order theretofore issued be dissolved, and that appellees recover of appellants their costs. A motion for a new trial was overruled, and this action of the court constitutes the sole error assigned. Appellees contend that this court is without jurisdiction, as appellants have failed to make a number of the parties to the judgment, parties to the appeal. There are about 414 appellants and about eighty-one appellees named in the assignment of errors. Appellees have given the names of eleven other persons who they claim should have been made parties to the appeal. We find that the cause was dismissed as to five of this number prior to the rendition of the judgment, and that one of the remaining six is evidently named as an appellant by a slight variation in name. None of the remaining five were parties to the action in the court below. We base this statement on the following facts disclosed by the record. Said five persons were not' named as parties in the complaint, as originally filed, and their names were never inserted therein by way of an amendment.

[403] 1. [402] However, we find the following entry, made more [403] than a year after the original complaint was filed, by which appellees claim they became parties plaintiff. “Come the parties herein and by counsel * * * and Stephen Dale et al. file petition to be made parties plaintiff to this suit, which reads as follows: (Here follows petition, containing the names of about 412 persons as petitioners). And the court being duly advised sustains said motion, and said Stephen Dale et al. are made parties plaintiff herein, to which defendants except, and the court being fully advised sustains said exception.” In view of §655 Burns 1914, §625 R. S. 1881, which defines an exception as being “an objection taken to a decision of the court upon a matter of law,” it is apparent that this entry is self-contradictory. But aside from such contradiction, and construing it most favorably in support of appellees’ contention, it cannot be said that any person, other than the said Stephen Dale, thereby became a party plaintiff in this action. This is true for the reason, that the Latin words et al., following his name, do not have the effect of making said entry apply to any other persons. The reasons for this conclusion may be found in the following decisions. Bonham v. McGeath (1901), 27 Ind. App. 436, 61 N. E. 688; Mutual, etc., Co. v. Dickinson (1900), 112 Ga. 469, 37 S. E. 713; Meanor v. Goldsmith (1907), 216 Pa. 489, 65 Atl. 1084, 10 L. R. A. (N. S.) 342; Saddler v. Smith (1907), 54 Fla. 671, 45 So. 718, 14 Ann. Cas. 570; Swift v. Thomas (1897), 101 Ga. 89, 28 S. E. 618; Breidenthal v. McKenna (1850), 14 Pa. 160; Lyman v. Milton (1872), 44 Cal. 630. In this connection it will be observed that Stephen Dale is named as an appellant in the assignment of errors. We conclude that appellees’ contention as to the question of this court’s jurisdiction is not well taken.

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Wyeth v. Eldin, 133 N.E. 38, 78 Ind. App. 401, 1921 Ind. App. LEXIS 227 (Ind. Ct. App. 1921).

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