Scandinavian American Bank v. Appleton
Scandinavian American Bank v. Appleton
Opinion of the Court
Action by the Scandinavian American Bank against John F. Appleton, on two promissory notes. From a judgment against it, the plaintiff has appealed.
The notes of the respondent, for $1,000 each, dated January 23, 1909, due in four and five months, were executed and delivered to the Electric Transportation Company, in payment of a stock subscription. On May 7, 1909, they were assigned to appellant as collateral security for the $5,000 note of the transportation company. The transaction in which these notes were thus assigned is the one mentioned in our opinion in Scandinavian American Bank v. Johnston, ante p. 187, 115 Pac. 102. That opinion fully discloses the facts. About the only difference between respondent’s position and that of Johnston is that respondent’s notes, pledged as collateral, were executed in the preceding January. This cause having been tried without a jury, is now before us for trial de novo. Without repeating the facts which appear in the Johnston case, we will simply state that, upon the evidence now before us, substantially the same as in the Johnston case, we cannot approve the finding of the trial judge that the appellant bank was not a bona fide holder of respondent’s notes for value in due course.
Respondent, in this action, contends, that the principal $5,000 note was collectible; that his collateral notes were
None of the cases cited by respondent sustains his contention that the bank should be required to first proceed against the endorsers. Prentice Weissinger v. Zone, supra, in no-respect touches the question. In Hulett v. Marine Sav. Bank, supra, there was sufficient evidence to sustain a finding that the endorsee, who held the defendant’s note as collateral, was not a holder in good faith. The maker of the principal note was also shown and conceded to be financially responsible and able to pay. The maker of the principal note in this case is now in the hands of a receiver and not shown to be solvent, In Citizens’ Bank v. Bank of Waddy, supra, one Paxton had delivered to the Bank of Waddy his renewal note, without at the time obtaining a surrender of his orig
Reversed and remanded, with instructions to enter judgment in favor of the appellant.
Chadwick and Moréis, JJ., concur.
Dunbar, C. J., dissents.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Scandinavian American Bank v. John F. Appleton
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- 2 cases
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- Syllabus
- Bills and Notes — Bona Fide Purchaser — Holder in Due Course —Evidence-—Sufficiency. Where the title to a note was defective by reason of fraud not discovered until after it was negotiated to a bank, and the bank established, by the undisputed evidence of disinterested witnesses, that it took the same before maturity for full value in good faith, it is entitled to a directed verdict as a holder in due course; and it is not evidence of bad faith, or sufficient to put the bank on inquiry, and prevent a directed verdict, that the maker had previously negotiated to the same bank the notes of another person the title to which was claimed to be defective, where the prior transaction was closed and settled three months before the note in question was negotiated to the bank, and bore no relation to it, and there was no occasion to prosecute any inquiry on the prior transaction. Pledges — Note as Collateral — Right of Pledgee — Corporations —Stockholders — Sureties on Principal Note. Where a stockholder’s notes for his stock subscription were negotiated by the corporation as collateral security for its own note, which was indorsed by other stockholders who had paid their stock subscription, the holder in due course of the principal and collateral notes may enforce the collateral, although it was fraudulently obtained, without first proceeding to collect the principal note, where the corporation had gone into the hands of a receiver and was not shown to be solvent, and the indorsers financially responsible on the principal note were only sureties for the corporation. Dunbae, C. J., dissents.