Darden v. Superior Court
Darden v. Superior Court
Opinion of the Court
This proceeding for a writ of mandamus arises from an action commenced by Reese, a minority shareholder, against the petitioner herein and the Lake Shore
Petitioner now seeks a writ of mandamus to compel respondent court to appoint the necessary commissioners to appraise Reese’s shares, to order the transfer of the stock to him pursuant to Corporation Code, sections 4658 and 4659, and to stay further dissolution proceedings. Relying on the cited statutes and the decision in Merlino v. Fresno Macaroni Manufacturing Co., 64 Cal.App.2d 462 [148 P.2d 884], petitioner contends that it is mandatory for the court to permit him as holder of more than 50 per cent of the corporate shares to purchase the shares of Reese when the requirements of the code section are met.
The question for decision is whether petitioner had a plain, speedy and adequate remedy at law. It is the settled practice that “where there is a right to an immediate review by appeal that remedy is almost as speedy as a writ proceeding.” Therefore it must be considered adequate unless the petitioner can show some special reason why appeal is rendered inadequate by the special circumstances alleged. (Phelan v. Superior Court, 35 Cal.2d 363, 370 [217 P.2d 951].) Inasmuch as the order complained of was appealable as a special order after final judgment (Code Civ. Proc., § 963) and an immediate review was available, the reviewing court cannot direct a modification of the order by mandamus unless the special circumstances alleged by petitioner constitute a clear exception to the general rule requiring a litigant to seek his remedy by appeal. Petitioner undertook to come within this
The alternative writ is discharged; the peremptory writ is denied.
McComb, J., and Wilson, J., concurred.
A petition for a rehearing was denied February 15, 1951.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.