McPherson v. Commercial Building & Securities Co.
McPherson v. Commercial Building & Securities Co.
Opinion of the Court
I. The Commercial Building & Securities Company, which will be referred to hereinafter as “the company,” was organized in 1920, under statutory provisions, with a capital stock paid up in excess of $300,000. Its purported business was to buy, improve, and sell real estate, and for that purpose, to borrow money upon its bonds: Its plan of securing its bonds was to put into the hands of a trustee specific securities, at estimated values, and to issue bonds for designated amounts against said deposits of securities, which securities were to be held by the trustee as security exclusively for the series of bonds issued against the same. The Central State Bank was such trustee. Successive deposits of securities were made in series designated as “-A, B, C, D, E, F, 6, and H.” Each series was secured *564 by a particular deposit. The indenture of trust appointing the trustee clothed it with full power over the securities for the benefit of the bondholder secured thereby. By such trust agreement, the trustee became the representative of the bondholders, and was fully empowered to enforce their rights as such, against the company. Under this trust deed, the company reserved the right to collect all accruing interest and rents, and to account for the same to the trustee, unless it should become in default in the payment of any of its accruing obligations'. If such default should continue for a period of 60 days, such right of collection was terminated. In June, 1925, the company became insolvent, and defaulted in its obligations. In order to protect its assets for the benefit of the bondholders during the 60-day period ensuing before the trustee could assume exclusive control of the securities, the trustee obtained the appointment of a receiver, one of the defendants herein. In December, 1925, this action was begun. In his petition the plaintiff purports to have brought the action for his own benefit and for the benefit of all other bondholders. He prayed judgment in his favor upon his own bonds, and prayed like judgments in favor of the other bondholders, without designating any. As an excuse for ignoring the pending receivership and the existing trustee, he averred that the receivership was a friendly one, and, in substance, that the interests of the receiver were hostile to the interests of the bondholders. Like allegations were made as against the trustee. Under the deed of trust set forth in the petition, the trustee was the pledgee of the securities, and was the proper representative of all the bondholders, with full power both under the trust deed and under the statute. Sections 12364 to 12371, Code of 1924. Plaintiff’s bond carried the written attestation of the trustee. There was no lack of privity, as between the holder of the bond and such trustee.
II. Was there misjoinder of causes of action and of parties, as: contended for by the defendants in their demurrer ? Section 10960, Code of 1924, provides as follows:
“Causes of action of whatever kind, where each may be' prosecuted by the same kind of proceedings, if held by the same party, and against the same party, in the same rights, and if action on all may be brought and tried in that county, may be joined in the same petition.”
Are the defendants who are named as directors of the corporation necessary parties to o a cause of action by plaintiff against the company? Is he prosecuting his cause of action against the company in the same rights as he is prosecuting the directors under their stat~utory liability? We deem it clear that an ac~ tion against the directors, to recover upon their statutory liability, is separate and distinct from his purported cause of action against the company, and that it cannot be joined therewith.- It is urged by the appellant that misjoinder is not one of the grounds of demurrer. It is true that it is not enumerated as one of the grounds in Section 11141. It is, nevertheless, true that we have always held that, where there is a misjoinder both of causes of action and of parties, the defect may be taken advantage of either by motion in arrest or by demurrer, if the facts appear in the petition. Mendenhall v. Wilson, 54 Iowa 589, and cases therein cited. Moreover, the present Section 11130, Code of 1924, which converts a demurrer into a motion to dismiss,- expressly includes “misjoinder of parties” as a ground of de *567 murrer. The demurrer in this case was made under this section, and in the form of a motion to dismiss.
In. view- of our conclusion at this point, we have no occasion to consider whether the provisions of the trust deed were such as absolved the directors from statutory liability.
With the modification indicated in the first division hereof, the Judgment of the district court is — Affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- J. E. McPherson, Appellant, v. Commercial Building & Securities Company Et Al., Appellees
- Cited By
- 16 cases
- Status
- Published