R. W. English Lumber Co. v. Hireen
R. W. English Lumber Co. v. Hireen
Opinion of the Court
This case has previously been before the supreme court, Hireen v. The R. W. English Lumber Company, 42 Colo., 216, 104 Pac., 84. The case was carefully considered in the supreme court, and as the facts are there clearly stated, a repetition is not required at our hands. There appears to have been no new evidence offered on the second trial, which resulted in the judgment from which this appeal now before us was taken. The only matter not common to both appeals grows out of the amendment to the complaint which plaintiff, under permission given by the supreme court, made prior to the last trial. Some question was made on the former appeal as to whether the complaint stated a cause of action for money had and received,. and while the court did not hold the complaint defective in that respect, it permitted the plaintiff to amend her complaint, if she desired so to do. Pursuant to this permission, presumably, plaintiff did amend her complaint by adding thereto a third cause of action on which she attempted, to state a cause of action for money had and received, but which, instead of statiug the facts constituting her cause of action in plain and concise language, as required by our code, conclusions of law were stated, and, therefore, the complaint, perhaps, failed to state a good cause of action under the code; nor was it in common-law form a declaration for money had and received. However, conceding this cause of action was not well pleaded, its sufficiency was not attacked by demurrer or by objection to the evidence on the ground that the complaint did not state a cause of
In Deery v. Hamilton, 41 Ia., 18, it is said:
“The estate has received the benefit of the amount which was advanced by defendant. It ought, in good conscience, to repay it with legal interest. This is not required because of the contract under which the money was borrowed, which is invalid, but on the ground that the estate has had the benefit of the money received from defendant. ’ ’
Our supreme court, when this case was before it, held that to sustain an action for money had and received, it is only necessary to show that the defendant has obtained money which in equity and right it ought to return. — Hireen v. English Lumber Co., supra. That announcement is in harmony with the authorities herein-above cited, and having been announced by our supreme court in the former consideration of this case, may well be said to be the law of the case. The evidence was amply sufficient to support the verdict of the jury upon
It has frequently been ruled that where, upon a proper application interposed in apt time, it would become the duty of the trial court to permit a complaint to be amended to correspond with the proof, it will be the duty of a court of review to treat the complaint as so amended. —Merritt v. Hummer, 21 Colo. App., 568, 122 Pac., 816; Lang v. Crescent Coal Co., 44 Wash., 267, 87 Pac., 261.
Judgment Affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.