People's Sav. Bank v. Marrs
People's Sav. Bank v. Marrs
Opinion of the Court
Appellee sued appellant bank to recover the sum of $876.98 as attorney’s fees ■due him from said bank for legal services rendered in a foreclosure suit against H. T. Groom, wherein appellee represented appellant in the district court of Potter count;?. Appellee alleges that H. T. Groom was indebted to him and to Mrs. Fannie S. Thompson as well as to appellant, and that such indebtedness was secured by deed of trust liens on three sections of land in Gray county, in the following order of priority: ap-pellee first, appellant second, and Mrs.. Thompson third; that with knowledge of this condition, and that appellee was going to foreclose, appellant employed appellee to handle the matter of the collection of its debt and arrange with H. T. Groom the amount of attorney’s fees that should be added, it being contemplated that such attorney’s fees should be realized from a sale of the lands; that the judgment in favor of appellant was subject tó a judgment in favor of appellee, and that a judgment in favor of Thompson was subject to both appellant’s and appellee’s judgments; that appellee was employed by appellant on or about January 12, 1912, to institute the suit against Groom; that the note executed by Groom to appellant, and upon-which suit was filed by ap-pellee, provided for reasonable attorney’s fees, and it was agreed between- appellee and appellant that; thj defendant would pay ap-pellee $100 in cash on his fee, and that the remainder due to be recovered and recited in the judgment should not be paid until and unless the defendant should collect the indebtedness due from Groom. Appellee alleged, in the alternative, that appellant directed appellee to arrange and agree with H. T. Groom on the amount of the attorney’s fees to be included in the judgment, and that the same should be paid to appellee only in the event the judgment against Groom-should be collected; that appellee filed the suit on June 15, 1912, secured a judgment August 31, 1912, which included the sum of $976.98 as attorney's fees; that on or about November 4th said land was sold under sheriff’s sale and bought in by W. O. Page, representing appellant bank, and reconveyed to H. P. Thompson by said bank for a consideration of $1,000 cash, and four notes aggregating $20,000, said notes secured by vendor’s lien on the land; that appellee received at such time a fee of $100, agreeing that the payment of the remaining $876.98 should await the final collection of appellant’s debt. It is further alleged that said judgment, including the attorney’s fees, had been fully collected by defendant, such collection, including, among other things, a note for $1,600, signed by Bron & McGregory, placed with appellant as collateral security by H. T. Groom, the principal and interest of which amounted to $1,832; also $6,606.31, collected from the Van Burén estate September 25, 1915, which should be applied as a credit on the Groom judgment; that these amounts, together with the $20,000 in notes given by Thompson, were sufficient to pay off the original judgment against Groom. Wherefore appellee was entitled to recover the remain *848 der of tiie attorney’s fees. Defendant answered to the merits by general denial and a plea of accord and satisfaction, alleging that plaintiff and defendant agreed that plaintiff would accept the sum of $100 as his fee for services'in said foreclosure suit, and samq was paid to him on November 5, 1018, in full satisfaction and discharge of his claim for attorney’s fees. The case was submitted to a jury upon special issues/ and resulted in a judgment in favor of appellee against appellant for the sum of $876.98 principal, and interest at 10 per cent, from August 31, 1912, aggregating $1,331.53.
The first assignment, to the effect that the court should have directed a verdict for appellant because the evidence is undisputed that appellee agreed to receive $100 in settlement of his fee, must be overruled. The jury found that defendant bank agreed with plaintiff that, for the latter’s services as attorney in the prosecution of its suit against Groom, defendant would pay plaintiff a sum equal to 10 per cent, of the principal and interest on the note placed in his hands for collection, payment of same to be made when such judgment was collected. The jury also found that the sum of $100 paid plaintiff on his fee by the defendant bank was not in full settlement of the amount due him. The question presented is, Is there any evidence in the record which tends to support these findings? Appellee wrote appellant January 8, 1912, suggesting that a fee of $100 or $150 be added to the judgment for him. . Appellant replied on January 12th: “» * * You agree with Mr. Groom on the amount to be added to the judgment for your fee.” Ap-pellee testified that he discussed with Groom the matter of hisi attorney’s fees, and that Groom instructed him to sue for the full 10 per cent.
By the second proposition under the first assignment it is insisted that, if plaintiff is entitled to any fee above $100, his right to the same is conditioned upon the bank’s collecting the full amount of the judgment against Groom. Appellee assents to this proposition, 'but insists that the evidence shows conclusively that appellant has collected the full amount of its judgment.
“ * * * And for such services that defendant would pay plaintiff $100 in cash to apply upon the fee that should be earned and recovered by plaintiff under the terms of said note, but that the remainder of such attorney’s fees should not be paid by defendant to plaintiff until and unless defendant should collect the indebtedness owing to it and the attorney’s fees that should be recovered in the judgment; * * * that, if plaintiff be mistaken as to the allegations in the 'foregoing paragraph, then, in the alternative, he alleges that defendant authorized and directed plaintiff to sue upon its note, adding and including such attorney’s fees thereto as might be arranged and agreed upon with said H. T. Groom, it being contemplated and understood that such attorney’s fees should be paid the said Groom, and from the sale of his lands and the proceeds thereof covered by defendant’s lien thereon, and that plaintiff should be paid such attorney’s fees only when and not unless the judgment to be obtained should be collected, it not being agreed that defendant should pay plaintiff the attorney’s fees recovered in the judgment independent of the collection thereof or from other sources than said lands, such judgment to be obtained for and in the name of defendant, including the attorney’s fees, which attorney’s fees were to belong to and be paid to plaintiff when collected.”
We think the court erred in submitting special issue No. 2, because there is no evidence that defendant agreed to pay the balance of the 10 per cent, attorney’s fees claimed by plaintiff when Thompson paid for the land, nor do appellee’s pleadings support a recovery upon any such ground. This disposes of the second and third assignments.
The judgment is reversed and the cause remanded.
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