Huffstetler v. Our Home Life Insurance
Huffstetler v. Our Home Life Insurance
Opinion of the Court
Our Home Life Insurance Company, a corporation, instituted an action at law against W. I. Huffstetler, which resulted in a judgment in favor of the plaintiff. The declaration contains three counts, but it becomes unnecessary to copy any of them, since the recovery was had only on the first count, which is upon a promissory note and is in the statutory form. To this count the defendant filed two pleas, which are as follows:
“1. That for a plea to the first count in the said de
Wherefore, this defendant says that for reason of the failure of the plaintiff’s warranty, and for the false and fraudulent representations as to the value of the stock, that he is relieved from any liability on the aforesaid note and prays that he may be hence dismissed with his own proper costs in this behalf most wrongfully sustained.
2. And for a second plea to said count defendant says: That he executed the note sued on in the said count as-part payment for fifty shares (50) of the capital stock of plaintiff corporation, that he was induced to purchase said stock and to give his note as part payment thereof, solely by certain false and fraudulent representations- and wárrantys, made by said plaintiff by and through their authorized agent, said representations and warranty being that the stock would increase in value twenty per cent (20) within thirty days, that the said plaintiff by and through its agent warranted to defendants that the said stock would increase in value twenty per cent (20) within thirty days, and that this warranty and representations was the sole consideration moving defendant to purchase stock, and execute his- note in part
To these pleas the plaintiff interposed a demurrer, which contained the following “substantial matters of law intended to be argued” in support thereof:
“Breach of warranty and fraud cannot be predicated upon an expression of opinion as to values of stock, present or future.
2. Oral understandings in regard to stock subscriptions cannot be introduced to vary written instrument.”
This demurrer was sustained and upon this ruling the defendant bases his main contention for a reversal of the judgment.
It may well be true that “the substantial matters of law intended to be argued,” which the statute requires to be stated in the demurrer, are not very aptly set forth. As we said in Heathcote v. Fairbanks, Morse & Co., 60 Fla. 97, 53 South. Rep. 950, “In considering the assign
Upon sustaining the demurrer to the pleas, the ferial court allowed the defendant until a specified dav in which to plead further. The defendant failed to file any further pleas and the plaintiff filed a praecipe for a default. No default was actually entered by the clerk upon this praecipe. At a later date the plaintiff filed a motion for a default ml dicit against the defendant, which would seem not to have been acted upon until the trial of the cause, but the final judgment recites that a default is entered against the defendant because of his failure to plead over. That the plaintiff was legally entitled to snch default there can be no question. As we held in Thomas v. Nathan, 65 Fla. 391, 62 South. Rep. 206, “Where there is in fact a default, the omission to make an entry thereof may be a merely technical and harmless error.” The assignments based upon the action of the court in empaneling a jury and submitting the cause for the assessment of damages prior to the actual entry of the default are without merit.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- W. I. Huffstetler, in Error v. Our Home Life Insurance Company, a Corporation, in Error
- Cited By
- 25 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. In passing upon an assignment based upon a ruling sustain- ' ing a demurrer to a plea, an appellate court will restrict its investigation to tbe grounds stated in tbe demurrer, unless tbe plea is so faulty as to constitute no defense to tbe action. 2. Whenever fraud is relied upon in any pleading, either at law or in equity, the allegations or averments should be specific and the ultimate facts constituting the particular fraud relied upon should be stated with certainty and distinctness, else such pleading, upon proper attack, will be held bad. The sufficiency of pleas setting up fraud as a defense is properly-raised by demurrer. 3. To constitute fraud, a representation must be of a specific material fact that is untrue and known to be so, and. stated for the purpose of inducing another to act, upon which statement the other relies in acting to his injury. 4. Averments in pleas of mere opinio js and promises and of indefinite matters are not sufficient to.show fraud. 5. In averring false representations, ultimate material facts, not opinions or promises, directly affecting the transaction should be clearly and distinctlv stated showing the specific representations made and relied on, the falsity of the representations, and the resulting injury to the party to whom they were made from acting thereon. (i. Where there is in fact a default, the omission to make an entry thereof may be a merely technical and harmless error.