Pendexter v. Vernon
Pendexter v. Vernon
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
This'is an action against the defendant as guarantor of a promissory note, made to the plaintiff by James Wilton, for $534 52, bearing date, Baltimore, 3rd April, 1841, and due at six months. The guaranty was written upon the back of the note, at the time of its execution, and is as follows, viz: ‘‘In consideration that Pendexter & Alden
The defendant, on the trial of the case, introduced and relied upon the deed of trust as evidence of an agreement to delay the collection of the money, for twelve months, and insisted that its effect was, to discharge his liability. And the Circuit Judge charged the jury, in substance that by the proper legal construction of the deed, it amounted to a covenant on the part of the plaintiff with Milton, that they would delay to enforce the judgment against him; and
We think this charge of the court is manifestly erroneous.
1. Had the stipulations of the deed of trust constituted an agreement for delay, as assumed in the charge, the plaintiff would not have been bound thereby. There is nothing-in the record to show that they had any knowledge of, or ever assented to its execution; and their attorney, in virtue of his general retainer, had no authority to take a deed of trust, or to bind his client by any such agreement.
2. But, the court erred in the construction of the deed. Its terms import no agreement to suspend or delay the enforcement of the judgment, and in judgment of law could have had no such effect; and from the proof it seems that in point of fact, it was not intended so to operate.
3. While it is admitted, that the guarantor will be discharged by the holder giving time to the maker, and thereby impairing the right, or increasing the risk of the guarantor, it is well settled, that taking a collateral security from the maker, without an agreement to give time to him will not discharge the guarantor. Story on Promissory Notes, sec. 485.
The obligation of a guarantor is very different from that of an endorser, and the law is much less strict in respect to the liability of the former than of the latter. Mr. Story lays it down, in sec. 460, that the omission to make presentment at the maturity of the note, and to give due notice of the dishonor, will not necessarily in the case of a guarantor, as in that of an endorser, amount to a discharge
The judgment will be reversed, and the cause remanded íbr a new trial.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.