Haddock v. Plymouth Coal Co.
Haddock v. Plymouth Coal Co.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
On March 14, 1902, the People’s Bank of .Wilkes-Barre, authorized by its charter to execute trusts of all sorts, was appointed receiver of the Plymouth Coal Company. In consequence of the general strike of the anthracite miners then in progress, it was unable, during the first six months of its receivership, to do much in operating the mines of the company. During that period its efforts were chiefly directed to the conservation of the property, which involved an expenditure of nearly $60,000 in excess of receipts. A.t the time of its appointment it was, and for several years prior thereto had been, the trustee for bondholders secured by a mortgage on the property of the coal company. The total indebtedness of that company at the time the receiver was appointed was $681,000, in which was included unpaid bonded indebtedness secured by the mortgage, amounting to $238,000. At the close of the miners’ strike it was deemed advisable that the corporate prop
The first complaint of the appellant is over the allowance of $9,975.62 as commissions or compensation to the appellee for its services as receiver during the period covered by its fourth and final account. During that period of one year and nearly four months it received the sum of $1,146,623.05, upon which it charged one per centum. Appellant’s contention is that the compensation ought to have been on the basis of only $1,000 per year, in view of what it alleges was an agreement on the part of the appellee to serve for such compensation as receiver from April 1, 1905, — the date upon which it relinquished control of the coal company’s property as trustee in the mortgage. As evidence of such an agreement the appellant offered a letter, addressed to the attorneys for the creditors of the coal company by the counsel for the receiver, of which the following is a copy: “January 6, 1906. Messrs. W. S. McLean and S. J. Strauss. Gentlemen: The suggestion of the committee of the board of directors of the People’s Bank made at the conference with you, had last Monday, to the effect that the bank would probably be willing to serve as receiver of the Plymouth Coal Co., for an annual compensation of $1,000, beginning April 1, 1905, has been ratified and approved by the board of directors, at their meeting held this morning, and I am now authorized to say that unless some extraordinary conditions or exigencies should, arise, largely increasing the labors and responsibilities of the bank, none of which are now foreseen, the bank would be willing to accept in lieu of commissions, as receiver of the Plymouth Coal Co., the sum of $1,000 annually, beginning
With the letter of January 6, 1906, out of the case, the only question that remains is as to the alleged ex-cessiveness of the compensation allowed to the appellant by the court below, whose duty it was to fix it, in the absence of an agreement as to what should be charged. During the seven years that the bank conducted the affairs of the appellant, as its receiver and trustee in its mortgage given to secure bondholders, the gross receipts of the business amounted to $5,582,041. The indebtedness paid off by the appellee was $974,980. For all its services during that period as trustee and receiver, rendered through the medium of a committee of its directors, composed of men of large experience in the successful administration of extensive coal mining operations in the anthracite field, its charges for commissions were $44,311.34. In its three accounts filed as trustee it charged as compensation eighty-seven one-hundredths of one per centum upon its gross receipts, and these charges were not objected to in any instance, but each account was absolutely confirmed by agreement, in open court, of all parties in interest. The compensation charged by the appellee in its last account was reduced to the percentage which it had charged as
Appellant’s complaint of the failure of the court below to sustain its third exception to the receiver’s account is sufficiently answered by the three facts found in the opinion dismissing that exception. These facts were fully sustained by the testimony, and we need add nothing to them in dismissing the sixteenth assignment of error. They are as follows: “1. The depositing of trust funds by the receiver in its own bank, in a business account, subject to check, was done in entire good faith and with the knowledge and acquiescence of the Plymouth Coal Co. and its creditors, was justified by the nature of the receiver’s duties, and such benefits if any, as accrued to the bank therefrom were considered in making the claims for compensation in the several accounts filed and confirmed by the court; and objections to the amounts so claimed were made by the president of the Plymouth Coal Co. to the effect that they were excessive, partly at least, because of the fact that ‘the bank had the use of the balances in favor of the receiver’ on its books (testimony of Mr; McLean); but it
Appellant’s statement of the questions involved on this appeal does not include the allowance of $1,500 as counsel fees, which was the subject of the second exception to the account. The allowance was reasonable and moderate, and, as the formal objection to it does not seem to be seriously pressed, it is overruled.
All of the assignments of error are dismissed and the decree is affirmed at appellant’s costs.
Reference
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- Receivership — Compensation of Receiver — Trust Company — Interest on deposit — Surcharge. 1. A percentage allowance to a trust company as compensation for its services as receiver during a period covered by its fourth and final account will not be reversed as being unreasonable or contrary to an alleged agreement under which such services were to be performed at a fixed sum per year,-where such compensation was fixed by the court, after hearing, at a most reasonable figure, and where the evidence disclosed either that the alleged agreement was never consummated or that it was subsequntly waived. 2. A trust company which acts as receiver will not be surcharged with interest upon receivership moneys deposited in its own bank, in a business account, subject to check, where it appears that such .deposit was made in good faith, with the knowledge and consent of the company whose, affairs were being administered and of its creditors, and was justified by the nature of receiver’s duties; that any benefits accruing to the trust company therefrom were considered in making claims for compensation; that no ascertainable profits were derived therefrom; and that in view of the circumstances it was not negligent in the receiver not to charge itself with such interest. Appeals — Trusts and trustees — Receiver—Accounts—Exceptions —Assignments of error. 3. On an appeal from a decree of the Common Pleas dismissing exceptions to an account of a receiver, the appellate court will not consider any question not raised by an exception to the account and made the subject of an assignment of error. The discussion of any such question by counsel for the appellant is entirely out of place. 4. On such an appeal where one of the exceptions raised an objection to the amount of the fee of receiver’s counsel, but such objection is not referred to in the statement of the questions involved in the appellant’s paper-book, ,and the objection is not seriously pressed, the assignment of error relating to it will be overruled; and this is especially so where the allowance by the lower court was apparently reasonable and moderate.