Stoddard v. Kimball
Stoddard v. Kimball
Opinion of the Court
This was a suit brought by the plaintiff as indorsee of a promissory note, against the defendant, as in
It further appeared, that some payments had been made by the maker of the note to the plaintiffs, towards the discharge of the debt, for securing which to the plaintiffs this note was received, and also that the maker being insolvent, the plaintiffs proved this debt against his estate, and received a dividend.
The defendant contended, that if liable at all, he was liable only for the balance of the debt due the plaintiffs, if less than the amount of the note, and the judge, who tried the cause, so ruled, subject to the opinion of the whole court, and in case they should be of opinion, that the plaintiffs are entitled to recover the whole amount, the verdict is to be altered and amended accordingly.
We think the direction was right. An indorser of an accommodation note, passed by indorsement to a bond fide holder, in due course of business, is effectually bound to all the liability, to which, by law, the indorser of a business note is liable. He stipulates to take on himself the qualified obligation of one, who indorses and puts in circulation a note taken by himself for value in the course of business.
If indeed an accommodation note is obtained from another, by fraud, deception, or false practices, or having been obtained for one purpose, is fraudulently misapplied to another, and it is negotiated to one, even for value, with full notice of the fraud in obtaining or misusing it, he cannot recover; he is not a bond fide holder; an attempt to recover it would make him a partaker in the fraud; and the same would be true of a business note.
In the present case, it appearing that the note was negotiated to the plaintiffs before it was due, for a valuable consideration,
Judgment on the verdict for the plaintiff for the smaller sum.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Charles Stoddard & another v. John Kimball
- Status
- Published