Rachofsky v. Rachofsky
Rachofsky v. Rachofsky
Opinion of the Court
D. W. Rachofsky, plaintiff in error, sued J. H. Rachofsky, Tobe Jones, and Jack Goldman, defendants in error, in the court below to determine the ownership of an iron safe levied upon and advertised for sale by Goldman, constable, by virtue of execution issued upon a final judgment in justice court, precinct No. 1, of Dallas county, obtained by Tobe Jones against J. H. Rachofsky, and for injunction pendente lite restraining the sale thereof. Interlocutory injunction was granted as prayed. Defendants in error Tobe Jones and J. H. Goldman, the constable, answered in substance that the *1135 alleged, ownership of plaintiff in error was derived by sale in bulk of a stock of merchandise and fixtures by J. H. Raehofsky to his brother, L. W. Raehofsky, and was ineffectual to convey title thereto (1) because not in compliance with the bulk sales law in that the statutory notice was not given, and (2) because the sale was made for the purpose of hindering, delaying, and defrauding the creditors of said J. H. Rac-hofsky. On plea that he was not a proper party to the suit J. I-I. Raehofsky was dismissed therefrom. There was trial by jury to whom the court submitted certain special issues, upon the jury’s answers to which judgment was entered against plaintiff in error and the interlocutory injunction dissolved. From such orders this appeal was taken.
There are 38 assignments of error presenting similar issues with little variation. For that reason we will not undertake to discuss them seriatim, but in lieu thereof discuss the issues as such. This brings us in natural order to the contention that the findings of the jury are without support in the evidence. The substance of the findings of the jury upon the special issues was that J. H. Itach-ofsky sold the safe in question and a stock of merchandise to his brother, D. W. Rachof-sky, for the purpose of hindering, delaying, and defrauding his creditors by placing same beyond their reach, and that the latter not only had knowledge of such - facts and circumstances as would put an ordinarily prudent man upon inquiry, which, if diligently pursued, would have disclosed such intention, but that he had actual knowledge of such intention, and that the effect of the sale was to place the property levied upon beyond the reach of creditors. The facts and circumstances deducible from the evidence tending to support such findings are these: Tobe Jones secured judgment against J. H. Raehofsky canceling Jones’ note for $30 and for certain usurious interest paid thereon with the statutory penalty aggregating $110. J. TI." Raehofsky had for many years been conducting in the city of Dallas a pawnshop and lending money in small amounts at usurious rates of interest. Jones sued J. H. Raehofsky to cancel the note and to recover usurious interest paid thereon and the statutory penalty thereon July 19, 1913. Raehofsky was served with citation June 21, 1913, and filed answer July 14, 1913. On July 17, 1913, J. I-I. Raehofsky by formal bill of sale transferred his entire stock of merchandise and fixtures, including the safe levied upon, to L. W. Raehofsky for a recited consideration of $1,750, of which $1,250 was paid by cheek and $489.99 by canceling the note of J. I-I. Raehofsky for that amount held by his brother, L. W. Raehofsky. The bill of sale was not recorded. The property conveyed was all the property owned by J. H. Raehofsky subject to execution. At the time of the sale - L. Wi Raehofsky, who was 25 years of age, was, and since boyhood had been, employed as salesman for Sanger Bros., in the city of Dallas, where he was required to be from 8 a. m. to 6 p. m. He and his brother, J. I-I. Raehofsky, who was 35 years old, were intimate and confidential in a personal and business way, borrowing money from each other without security. After the sale to L. W. Raehofsky, J. II. Rachof-sky remained in charge and possession of the business, carrying the keys, making sales, and keeping books. It was a profitable business when sold. D. W. Raehofsky was at the store during the day only when he could get away from Sanger Bros., and of evenings when he had no engagements as a professional musician. He had no key to the store. I-Ie paid his brother no salary, commission, or interest in the profits of the business, but gave him free use of space and lights in the store to conduct a loan and watch-repairing business. At the time of the sale the sign on the window was “J. II. Raehofsky.” No change in that respect was made after the purchase. L. W. Raehofsky did not know the rate of storage or interest charged in the business conducted for him by his brother. He knew casually of Jones’ claim against his brother when the transfer was made, as well as others. The foregoing is a brief general statement of the testimony upon which the jury findings wrere based.
There are numerous assignments of error, some repeated, attacking the court’s action in substituting lost deposition, the form of the verdict, remarks of the court, forms of questions charged to be leading, the admission of improper and prejudicial testimony, the examination of witnesses upon their depositions'taken in the case, and the exclusion of testimony claimed to be material. We have carefully examined all these assignments and conclude that none of-them present reversible error.
The judgment is affirmed.
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Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.