Zeller v. Chipman

474 S.W.2d 755, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 2326
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 17, 1971
DocketNo. 15017
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 474 S.W.2d 755 (Zeller v. Chipman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Zeller v. Chipman, 474 S.W.2d 755, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 2326 (Tex. Ct. App. 1971).

Opinion

BARROW, Chief Justice.

Appellee, Guy Chipman, Jr., d/b/a Guy Chipman Company, a licensed real estate broker, brought this suit to recover a real estate commission from Roger L. Zeller. The jury found: (1) that the efforts of the Chipman Company were the efficient and procuring cause of the sale of Zeller’s house; and (2) that the Chipman Company had not abandoned and terminated its efforts, and the sale thereafter consummated through independent negotiations of another broker. Judgment was accordingly entered on the jury verdict whereby Chip-man Company recovered the sum of $892.50, together with a stipulated reasonable attorney’s fee of $300.00.

Zeller has timely perfected this appeal and asserts seven assignments of error. Under his first five points, Zeller complains of the definition of “procuring cause of the sale” as given by the trial court. Under his sixth and seventh points, Zeller asserts that the trial court erred in de[756]*756nying his motion for judgment non ob-stante veredicto because there is no evidence or insufficient evidence to support the jury’s finding on his defensive theory of abandonment.

Since the final two points would require a rendition of a take-nothing judgment, these points should be considered at the outset. Both are based on the premise that the trial court erroneously overruled Zeller’s motion for judgment non obstante ve-redicto ; therefore, both present a “no evidence” dr law question. Chemical Cleaning, Inc. v. Chemical Cleaning & Equipment Service, Inc., 462 S.W.2d 276 (Tex.1970); Calvert: “No Evidence” and “Insufficient Evidence” Points of Error, 38 Tex.L.Rev. 361 (1960). In determining this law question, we must consider only the evidence and the inferences tending to support the finding and disregard all evidence and inferences to the contrary. Garza v. Alviar, 395 S.W.2d 821 (Tex.1965).

In August, 1969, Zeller granted J. W. Coker, d/b/a John Dick Company, an exclusive listing on his property at 519 Cave Lane, San Antonio. Prior thereto, Chipman Company had a listing to sell a residence at 339 Linda Drive, San Antonio, owned by L. J. Redwine and wife, La-Verne. On August 13, 1969, an Earnest Money Contract was entered into between the Redwines and James Craig, whereby Craig agreed to purchase the Linda property. During the course of the negotiations on the Linda property, Mrs. Redwine advised Mrs. Clara Belle Cather, Chipman Company’s northside office manager, that the Redwines were interested in purchasing a home in Northwood, and were particularly interested in the Cave Lane residence. Mrs. Cather was familiar with the property, since Chipman Company once had a listing on it, and in fact, she still had a key. She called Coker and secured his permission to show the house to her prospect. Mrs. Cather showed the house to Mrs. Redwine, who agreed to purchase it. Mrs. Cather prepared an Earnest Money Contract showing the sales price as $28,750.00, payable $4,750.00 in cash and assumption by buyers of Zeller’s note which had a balance owed of $24,000.00. Mrs. Cather arranged with Coker for them to present the Earnest Money Contract to Zeller at the latter’s office the following morning. At this meeting, Coker learned for the first time that the buyers were the Redwines. He complained at first that the Redwines were his clients in that Mrs. Redwine had talked to him on the telephone about the house a few weeks previously. However, Coker agreed to divide the commission on this sale, and the Earnest Money Contract was presented to Zeller with a provision that the real estate commission be divided equally between Chipman Company and John Dick Company. Zeller signed the Earnest Money Contract after changing the sales price to his original price of $29,750.00. Mrs. Redwine subsequently agreed to this change in price.

This Earnest Money Contract was contingent upon the closing of the sale of the Redwines’ Linda property and the closing of the Cave Lane deal prior to August 31, 1969. Unfortunately, Craig subsequently backed out of his contract to purchase the Linda property and forfeited his earnest money. In the meantime, the Redwines commenced dealing directly with Coker. Arrangements were made by Coker for the Redwines to move into the Cave Lane property on a temporary rental basis until they could arrange for the down payment. On September 24, 1969, another Earnest Money Contract was entered into between the Redwines and Zeller, whereby the Red-wines agreed to purchase the property for $29,750.00, payable $2,750.00 down, assumption of the $24,000.00 note and the balance to be evidenced by a 90-day note to Zeller. This contract provided that John Dick Company was to receive all the commission. The purpose of this Earnest Money Contract is not clear in that the entire deal was closed on the same date. Chipman Company was not a party to the second Earnest Money Contract, but made demand [757]*757for half of the commission when Chipman learned of the closing of the deal.

Zeller urges by his sixth and seventh points that the undisputed evidence establishes that Chipman Company had abandoned its efforts to close the Redwine sale, and that it was subsequently closed through the independent efforts of Coker. The basis for this contention is the testimony of Coker that about two weeks after the Earnest Money Contract of August 19, 1969, had been executed, Chipman telephoned and advised that they had been unable to sell the Linda property and that his company was through with the Redwines. Zeller urges that since Chipman did not take the stand subsequently and deny Coker’s testimony, Chipman is bound by this testimony. Such contention overlooks the prior testimony of Chipman to the contrary, wherein he testified that he had several conversations with Coker after August 19, 1969, relative to the closing and thought Coker and Chipman were working together in an effort to close the sale to the Redwines. Letters were introduced which showed that as late as September 20, 1969, Chipman was still working with the Redwines in an effort to close the sale with Craig. We cannot say that the record establishes as a matter of law that Chipman Company had abandoned their efforts to induce the Redwines to purchase the property. Accordingly, the sixth and seventh points are overruled.

Zeller’s first five assignments of error complain of the trial court’s definition of “procuring cause of the sale”1 and particularly the court’s instruction that “it is immaterial that the transaction is finally consumated [sic] by another broker.” (Emphasis ours.) Zeller urges that such instruction was a comment on the weight of the evidence in that the trial court thereby instructed the jury not to consider the evidence which showed that the Red-wine-Zeller sale had actually been consummated by Coker. This objection is valid and the trial court erred in overruling Zeller’s timely objection to this instruction.

The applicable rule of law was stated by this Court in Cass v. Hurst, 329 S.W.2d 450

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Bluebook (online)
474 S.W.2d 755, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 2326, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/zeller-v-chipman-texapp-1971.