Savings Institution of Williamsport v. Folk
Savings Institution of Williamsport v. Folk
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
As to the material facts of this case there is but little, if indeed any, serious contention between the parties. At the time of the transaction which resulted in this suit, Folk, the defendant, was not a depositor in the plaintiff bank and had no commercial relations with it. He was a tenant of some real estate owned by it and was known to its active manager as a man of financial responsibility. In January, 1906, he presented, at the counter of the defendant, a check drawn to his order by one L. E. Bates, on a bank in Mahanoy City, for $360, and requested that it be cashed for his accommodation.
Either at this time or shortly before when a similar request had been made — there being some conflict of testimony on this point — the plaintiff’s manager had advised the defendant that the financial standing of Bates was bad and warned him that if the check should be returned unpaid, the plaintiff would be compelled to hold him, the defendant, on his indorsement. The latter, however, persisted in his request for accommodation and indorsed the check. The plaintiff took it and, making no charge whatever for the favor, gave to him, in cash, the full amount called for by the check.
In accordance with its custom in handling foreign checks- — ■
We do not understand it to be alleged that in any or all of the facts thus far recited there occurred anything to relieve the defendant from the obligation created by his indorsement of the check. But it later appeared that, at the time of the transaction, the West Branch National Bank was itself a creditor of Bates, the drawer of the check, and held his past due judgment exemption note for $500 and interest.
The receipt by it of this check in the manner indicated, as well as some previous transactions of which its officers had knowledge, led them to conclude that Bates was maintaining a regular deposit account in the bank at Mahanoy City. They accordingly sent their note direct to the county seat of Schuylkill county, caused judgment to be entered thereon and an attachment execution to be issued. This was served on the bank shortly before the check was presented and, as the attachment covered practically all of the money on deposit, there were no funds available for the payment of the check and it was refused with the results already mentioned.
As we have seen, the plaintiff had no knowledge of any of these matters until after it had taken up the protested check. It neither did nor omitted to do any act, from the time it
If this be sound it must be manifest that no bank could afford to accept a foreign check from its depositor — much less from a stranger — without a special contract of indemnity or the payment of a sum sufficient- to insure the risk, or both. The serious effect, upon the business world, of such a declaration by a court can hardly be overestimated. Certainly none of the cases cited by the able counsel for appellant goes to such á length.
Under the established facts of this case we can see no room for the conclusion that the relation of the defendant and plaintiff was that of vendor and vendee; that the former sold and the latter bought a check, like any other commodity, and that the indorsement of the defendant carried no other covenant than an implied warranty of his title to the paper.
On the contrary we think when the defendant presented his check and requested, as an accommodation, the cash it called for, he must have contemplated that the plaintiff would transmit the check to the bank upon which it was drawn, for thus only could it finally get back the money it was about to advance. As no provision was made nor direction given for any special mode of transmission, it must have 'been further contemplated that it would be along some of the channels of trade and through some of the normal agencies ordinarily used by the commercial world; and the selection of such channels and agencies by the plaintiff, in good faith and with reasonable care, must be regarded as having received the implied approval of the defendant.
The present case, in its facts and the legal principles applicable
In Bank v. Strauch, 20 Pa. Superior Ct. 196, this court following Rapp v. Bank, used the following language, in an opinion by Orlady, J.: “Although the amount of a check left with a
Measured by the principles enunciated in the language we have quoted the defense set up in this case must fail. It has not been shown that the plaintiff was guilty of any act of negligence or breach of duty nor that the defendant was misled to his injury by any act or omission upon its part. The defendant, after being duly warned of the possible risk he assumed, deliberately entered into the obligation of an indorser and the plaintiff, on the strength of that indorsement, gave him the money he requested. We think, therefore, the learned trial court was right in directing a verdict for the plaintiff and entering judgment thereon. The assignments of error are dismissed.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.