Turner v. Deckner-Willingham Lumber Co.
Turner v. Deckner-Willingham Lumber Co.
Opinion of the Court
Separate equitable actions were instituted by Security Plumbing Company et al., and Deckner-Willingham Lumber Company et al., against H. H. Turner, L. L. Jones, and E. R. Gallimore, seeking to set up claims of liens of materialmen for material furnished in the improvement of real estate, and for injunction, receiver, cancellation, and other relief. The cases were consolidated. General and special demurrers to the petitions were overruled, and on exception the judgment of the trial court in each ease was affirmed. Turner v. Security Plumbing Co., 165 Ga. 479 (141 S. E. 291); Turner v. Deckner-Willingham Lumber Co., 165 Ga. 809 (142 S. E. 460). The general and special demurrers and oral motion to dismiss the consolidated case were overruled, and on exception the judgment of the trial court was affirmed. Turner v. Security Plumbing Co., 165 Ga. 652 (141 S. E. 651). The consolidated case was referred to an auditor. The auditor excluded certain testimony offered by the plaintiff as to former statements-made by Turner, which ruling was made one of the grounds of exception to the auditor’s report. The judgment sustaining the auditor in rejecting the evidence was reversed. Deckner-Willingham Lumber Co. v. Turner, 171 Ga. 240 (155 S. E. 1). After return of the remittitur to the trial court, the case was recommitted to the auditor for the purpose of including such evidence in his report and
1. In equity cases where an auditor is appointed, exceptions of fact to his report shall be passed upon by the jury when approved by the judge. Civil Code, § 5141; DuBose v. Thomas, 136 Ga. 673 (3) (71 S. E. 1106); Wiley v. Sparta, 154 Ga. 1, 23 (114 S. E. 45, 25 A. L. R. 1342); Henderson v. Lott, 170 Ga. 261 (3) (152 S. E. 98).
(a) Under the pleadings and the evidence there was no abuse of discretion in approving the exceptions of fact.
(b) The judge did not abuse his discretion in delaying his rulings on the exceptions of law until after the exceptions of fact were passed upon by the jury.
2. In the light of the former decisions of this court (165 Ga. 479, 165 Ga. 652, supra), neither the general grounds nor the special grounds of the motion for a new trial, complaining of certain excerpts from the charge and of refusal of certain requests to charge, and of certain omissions to charge without request, considered in the light of the pleadings and the evidence and of the entire charge as given, show cause for reversal for any reason assigned.
3. The pleadings and the evidence authorized the verdict sustaining the exceptions of fact to the auditor’s report.
5. The judge did not err in refusing a new trial, and in entering the final decree.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- TURNER v. DECKNER-WILLINGHAM LUMBER CO.
- Status
- Published