C & A Land Co. v. General Mechanical Corp.
C & A Land Co. v. General Mechanical Corp.
Opinion of the Court
1. A special demurrer, being a critic, must itself be free from imperfections. Southern States Portland Cement Co. v. Helms, 2 Ga. App. 308, 314 (58 SE 524). Certain paragraphs of the answer and cross action (Paragraphs 9, 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, and 9E) in the present case as amended January 11, 1967, contained allegations that the contract sued upon by the plaintiff was “ambiguous, misleading, vague and indefinite” in certain parts. These allegations were demurred to by the plaintiff “on the ground that it is an attempt by the defendant to file a special demurrer after time stated in the process as the appearance day in this case, the same being contrary to law.” There is an order in the record extending the time for filing demurrers and defensive pleadings to a time after the time stated in the process as the appearance day of the case. These allegations therefore, even if treated as demurrers, are not subject to the objections made. Whether or not, if treated as demurrers, they were filed within the extended time is not a question raised by the demurrers interposed thereto. While the defendant, by a later amendment, struck these paragraphs in their entirety, substituting a new paragraph only as to one (Paragraph 9), he did not waive his right to complain of the court’s ruling on the demurrer. Peacock Constr. Co. v. Chambers, 223 Ga. 515, 518 (156 SE2d 348); Act approved March 10, 1966, amending Code § 81-1001 (Ga. L. 1966, p. 451). Accordingly, we must hold that the trial court erred in sustaining the demurrers, the sustaining of which is complained of in Enumerations of error 1 through 6.
2. The defendant in his answer and cross action as amended January 11, 1967, sought to claim (Paragraphs 9F, 9G, 9H, 11A, and 24D) a partial failure of consideration based upon allegations that the plaintiff, in the contract sued upon and attached to the petition, had in Paragraph 2 of the contract agreed to supervise the work of other contractors, which contract of supervision plaintiff had failed to perform, and that it was orally agreed defendant was to be paid $50' “per unit” for such supervision, which amount was included in the price of $898.50 per unit specified in the written contract. Partial failure of consideration was claimed in the amount of $3,800
3. The demurrers, so far dealt with, were sustained by the trial judge on February 3, 1967, with 10 days in which to amend, the order reciting “in the event the amendment to be filed by the defendant does not meet the demurrers herein passed upon, the cross action of the defendant shall stand dismissed.” On February 13, 1967, to meet these demurrers, the appellant struck Paragraph 9 and all of the subparagraphs 'and substituted a new Paragraph 9 which new Paragraph 9 reiterated partly the erroneous conclusion that plaintiff was required to perform supervisory services over the other contractors. A new Paragraph 11A was also substituted, its effect depending upon the same assumption and a new Paragraph 24D also depending upon the same assumption and resubmitted Paragraphs 24H and 241. This amendment was allowed and ordered filed subject to demurrer and objection, whereupon
Irrespective of whether the amendment met the demurrers above referred to, and irrespective of whether the trial judge was correct in sustaining the demurrers prior to the last amendment, he erred in providing that the cross action be dismissed if the amendment did not meet the demurrer in his order of February 3, 1967, and erred in his order of February 21, 1967, in striking the cross action. Paragraphs 14 and 15 of the cross action set up a partial plea of failure of consideration based upon the alleged failure of the plaintiff to complete portions of the installations in a good and workmanlike manner, causing defendant to incur expenses in a total amount of $4,612.77 to complete and install the plumbing facility which plaintiff contracted to install. While these paragraphs were demurred to at one time calling for additional information as to the expenses, an amendment was filed setting forth this information and this demurrer was never renewed to the paragraphs as amended. Accordingly, the cross action was not subject to be stricken in its entirety inasmuch as it set up this defense of partial failure of consideration.
Judgment reversed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.