Sarria v. Alvarez Peniza
Sarria v. Alvarez Peniza
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
On November 26, 1932, Jorge Sarria brought an action against Victoriano Alvarez Peniza to recover the amount of a judgment obtained by the former on January 20, 1926, against V. Alvarez & Co. for the sum of $1,778.72, with interest thereon at 6 per cent per annum from April 5, 1924, until fully paid. It is alleged in the complaint that said judgment has not been paid either wholly or partially by V. Alvarez & Co. or by its managing partner the defendant, Victoriano Alvarez Peniza. It is further alleged that on December 27,1928, a writ for the execution of the judgment was issued and that the marshal returned it unexecuted because said firm was. insolvent and had ho property to pay the judgment. The defendant has refused to pay the sum of $2,934.14, which is the.amount of the judgment and interest thereon.
The defendant denied that V. Alvarez & Co. was a mercantile partnership organized under the laws of Puerto Kico either at the time of the filing of the complaint against said partnership or at the time of the rendition of the judgment for the amount claimed. He alleged that the deed of partnership has expired and that the same has not been extended, the partnership being consequently dissolved. The defendant admitted that he was adjudged to pay the amount claimed in the complaint. He denied, for lack of sufficient information and belief, that on December 27, 1928, or at any other time, a writ of execution of the aforesaid judgment was issued and that the marshal returned the same unexe-
As new matter of defense, the defendant set up that the amount claimed in the complaint arose from services rendered by the plaintiff, while married to Ana Maria Asencio, and that on April 5, 1927, the plaintiff was divorced from the said Ana Maria Asencio, who is the owner of one-half of said amount. The defendant alleged that this lady did not appear as a party plaintiff herein and that her husband could not bring an action to recover property belonging to the conjugal partnership.
The defense of nonjoinder of parties plaintiff in the complaint was also founded on the fact that it was not alleged therein that Victoriano Alvarez was the sole managing partner of the firm of V. Alvarez & Co., nor was the complaint brought against said partnership in liquidation.
Subsequently, after the complaint had been answered, Ana Maria Asencio requested and obtained leave to file a complaint in intervention based on the same facts averred in the original complaint. The intervener alleged that the judgment sought to be enforced herein belongs to the conjugal partnership (sociedad de gcmamdales) that she had with the plaintiff Jorge Sarria, and prayed that judgment be rendered sentencing the defendant to pay her one-half of the amount claimed in the original complaint. The plaintiff Jorge Sarria consented that judgment be rendered against the defendant Victoriano Alvarez in conformity with the allegation of the intervener. The defendant denied the essential facts of the complaint in intervention and set up the same defenses presented against the original complaint. The district court entered judgment senténcing the defendant to pay to the plaintiff and to the intervener, in equal shares, the amount claimed in the complaint with interest thereon and costs including attorney’s fees.
The appellant maintains that the district court erred in not holding that there was a nonjoinder of parties plaintiff
The third assignment is based on the ground that the lower court failed to hold that there was a nonjoinder of parties defendant, both in the original complaint and in the complaint in intervention. The appellant maintains that both complaints should have alleged that Victoriano Alvarez was the only managing partner of the firm of V. Alvarez & Co. and that this partnership in liquidation should have been
The fourth assignment is that the lower court admitted in evidence the writ of execution issued April 27, 1928, in the ease brought against V. Alvarez & Co. In examining this assignment we notice that the same has not been discussed in appellant’s brief. However, in his argument under the 'third assignment the defendant states that the averment that V. Alvarez & Co. is insolvent and has no property has not been proved, because the marshal’s return to the writ of execution can not constitute evidence to prove such essential facts as those alleged in the original complaint and in the complaint in intervention. The defendant maintains that he objected to the admission of said writ of execution because he considered it null and void. The alleged nullity is predicated on the fact that at the time the judgment was sought to be executed, Jorge Sarria could not obtain execution, because he was not the owner of the whole judg
Assuming, without deciding, that the writ of execution was void and that its service and the marshal’s return were not"admissible in evidence, the fact would always be that the defendant practically admitted that V. Alvarez & Co. was insolvent and had no property to satisfy the judgment. We say this because the defendant denied on information and belief the averments of the complaint on this point. This denial should not be allowed when it is plain that the party denying has personal knowledge of the facts denied. Dimas v. López, 41 P.R.R. 873; 49 C. J. par. 334, pp. 267-268.
In this case the facts necessarily hinge on the knowledge had by Victoriano Alvarez. He was the sole managing partner of V. Alvarez & Co. and could not deny on information and belief that the firm was insolvent and that it lacked the necessary property to pay the judgment. No one was in a better position than he to know the financial situation of said partnership. His denial practically amounts to an admission of the facts averred in the complaint on this point. The error must be overruled.
It is finally alleged that the court below erred in adjudging the defendant to pay costs including attorney’s fees. The appellant is of the opinion that this pronouncement is neither just nor equitable, because Jorge Sarria brought suit against Victoriano Alvarez without the concurrence of his former wife, to whom half of the amount of the judgment obtained against V. Alvarez & Co. belonged. It is maintained that the defendant acted correctly in defending himself to save his responsibility in so far as that lady was concerned and that hence there has been no obstinacy (temeri-
The judgment appealed from must be affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.