Clopton v. Jolley Terry
Clopton v. Jolley Terry
Opinion of the Court
We adopt the statement of this case made by Chief- Justice Key, reported in 181 S. W. 562:
“Jolley & Terry brought suit in the county court upon open account against one J. K. *800 Miller, and caused an attachment to be issued and levied upon two mules; whereupon A. M. Olopton filed with the officer who executed the writ of attachment a claimant’s oath and bond, and thereby obtained possession of the animals referred to. The sheriff, as required by law, returned the oath and bond to the district court, where, in a trial of the rights of property, judgment was rendered against Olopton and the sureties upon his replevy bond, and he has appealed. In their pleading making up the issues,, appellees alleged that at the time of filing his claimant’s oath and bond appellant had no right, title or interest to the property, nor any right to the possession thereof. In his answer appellant denied those allegations, and alleged that at the time referred to he had title to the property, and had possession and the right of possession thereof. His answer also contained other averments specifically pleading some, if not all, of the facts hereinafter referred to. Upon that issue it was shown that prior to the bringing of appellees’ suit against J. K. Miller appellant had acquired from the Merchants’ & Farmers’ State Bank of Elgin a valid mortgage executed by J. K. Miller upon the property here in controversy, and that Miller had also executed and delivered to appellant an instrument of writing in the form of a bill of sale, conveying the property to appellant, and that appellees had notice of the existence of such 'mortgage and bill of sale before they sued out their writ of attachment.”
In answer to special issues the jury found that Miller was in actual physical possession of the property involved, which was admitted, and also found that this possession was for Miller himself in his own right, and not as agent for Olopton. The jury also found that the instrument in bill of sale form did not pass the title to the property because of the intent of the vendor and vendee.
The first assignment complains that the eoni’t erred in overruling appellant’s motion to set aside the verdict of the jury upon the two facts above mentioned. The first proposition under this assignment is:
' “When the answer of the jury to a special issue propounded to them for the purpose of ascertaining whether a bill of sale absolute on its faca was intended by the parties to pass title to the property therein described, or was intended as a mortgage only, is against the great preponderance of the evidence, the trial court should, when requested, set aside the special verdict, and grant a new trial.”
The issue whether the instrument was in fact a bill of sale or a* mortgage could have been decided either way by the jury, and its verdict would have been sustained by the evidence. That it was an actual sale is supported by the instrument itself and by the testimony of Miller, the maker, and Olopton, the beneficiary, and also by the testimony of Mr. Heebie, the president of the bank, who had the instrument prepared to carry out the agreement with him, as representative of the bank, for Olopton to pay the $2,0T0 due the bank by Miller, and is further supported by the circumstances that the property was already mortgaged to the bank, and an additional mortgage was not necessary, hut a bill of sale was, and the fact that no claim has ever been made since by Olopton of the existence of any indebtedness against Miller, and the fact that Olopton still holds the property and Miller makes no claim of ownership.
The second proposition under the first assignment is:
“When the answer of the jury to a material special issue, propounded to them for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not the claimant of personal property in a trial of the right of property was in legal possession of such property, through his agent or foreman, at the time of the levy of an attachment thereon, is not supported by the evidence, the trial court should, when requested by proper motion, set aside the special verdict and grant a new trial.”
Appellees make no answer in their brief to appellant’s second proposition. We therefore hold that the second proposition is correct, and sustain the first assignment of error.
The fourth assignment is too general to require consideration. •
For the reasons expressed in our consideration of the second proposition under appellant’s first assignment, the judgment of the trial court is reversed, and the cause remanded.
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Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.