Peete v. Renshaw
Peete v. Renshaw
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
Peete, administrator of Matilda Chesbro, filed petition to set aside the report of Stimson, receiver, and be allowed to share in the proceeds of property which had been held by the receiver, on the ground that his intestate was a creditor who was entitled to share with others in those proceeds. The court - below denied the petition. Comstock, trustee in bankruptcy of F. B. Chesbro, filed a similar petition with like result. They join as plaintiffs in error.
The Boston and Colorado Power and Water Company owned certain property and franchises in Clear Creek County and had certain water rights in Boulder County. It was heavily indebted to defendant in error, Renshaw, and others. May 31st, 1913, Renshaw brought suit in Clear Creek County District Court against said company on promissory notes and for moneys advanced, alleging that the notes were part of the purchase price of the Clear Creek
E. C. Stimson was appointed receiver “with full power and authority” inter alia, to wind up the company’s affairs and dissolve the same, to continue the business, “to sell any and all property of said defendant company upon.order of this court” and apply the proceeds first to expenses and then to the creditors “in proportion to their respective claims as the same shall be filed and approved in and by this court,” then to the stockholders. “Said receiver shall have power and authority to pass upon all claims due from said defendant company and report the same to this court.”
There was an answer denying the mismanagement, alleging fraud in the sale of the Clear Creek property by Renshaw to the Company and offering to rescind.
No order was made by the court to the receiver to sell the property, and he never did so.
October 6, 1914, Renshaw had judgment for $100,730.79 and execution awarded. In 1916 he obtained a special order for leave to issue execution, and July 13th of that year he levied an execution on the Clear Creek property and bought it in at execution sale, for $72,000. He satisfied all creditors except the Chesbros, and credited the remainder of his bid on his judgment. By direction of the court the sheriff gave the receiver $25,000 of the proceeds of the sale to cover the expenses of the receivership.
In the meantime the Chesbros had sent to the receiver statements of their claims, but they did not file them in court. March 16,19lk, the receiver wrote to F. B. Chesbro a letter in which he suggested that he consult an attorney, saying that he could not advise him how to proceed. July 25th, 191U, Wardner, attorney in Boston, for the Ches
September, 1917, a year after the receiver’s discharge, plaintiffs in error filed their separate petitions, asking that the judgment for plaintiff and all orders subsequent to
At the trial upon which Renshaw recovered his judgment the defendant did not appear. It is now claimed that the notice to call the case for trial was insufficient. Counsel, however, have not assigned error upon this point, and on page 20 of their reply brief they apparently abandon the question, so we do not further notice it.
Counsel for the receiver in his brief claims that the issue of execution and the sale under it were proper and right, because, as he claims, the case was thereby rendered a mere suit for money judgment.
We think this is wrong. The complaint and the order of the appointment of a receiver show that a receivership to ■ liquidate the whole property was intended and created. Renshaw could not change his suit into one for mere judgment and execution, and so avoid the receivership, while there were creditors in court, even with the receiver’s consent. All creditors, therefore, who came in according to the terms of the order of the receiver’s appointment were entitled to demand liquidation and distribution.
There is much dispute in argument as to whether the sending of the claims to the receiver was a compliance with the requirement of the order of appointment and whether the claimants were justified in assuming that their claims were properly filed. For the purposes of this decision, however, we shall treat the claims as properly filed in court, and we shall- assume that, having so filed them, the claimants treated them as they did after filing them with the receiver. What then is the position of these claims in equity? Was it not their duty to take some action to present the claims? No one else had such a duty. It was not the receiver’s duty to look after the claims for them. They made no move for three years. They never even employed
The judgment-should be affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Peete, as Administrator v. Renshaw
- Status
- Published