Simonsen v. Froedtert Lumber Co.
Simonsen v. Froedtert Lumber Co.
Opinion of the Court
Defendant contends, that the verdict in plaintiff’s favor should have been set aside as contrary to the great weig'ht of evidence; urging on this behalf the long delay of over two years after the rendition of the services before a claim for commission was made; the fact that plaintiff had expressed a willingness to leave the amount of compensation to be determined by Mr. Froedtert; that at one time $500 would have been an acceptable sum as compensation ; that plaintiff’s position as general manager, vice-president, and director of the defendant corporation establishes a presumption that the services were rendered by him as part of his duties to the company as such officer; the positive-denial by Mr. Froedtert of any special agreement; and that all of these should have overborne in the minds of an unprejudiced jury the positive testimony of the plaintiff that
' A consideration of the testimony satisfies us, however, that there was presented an issue of fact for the jury which cannot now be disturbed.
Defendant further claims that in any event there was no proper basis, either by the pleadings or under the evidence, for any more than nominal damages.
Under plaintiff’s testimony as to the conversation preceding the sale in 1919 Froedtert said that he would rather see plaintiff “make the commission than an outside man, that is, a business broker or a real-estate man.” The only testimony upon which the jury’s assessment of damages at five per cent, of the sale price can be supported is that given by plaintiff’s witness, a real-estate and merchandise broker of eight years’ experience in Milwaukee. He testified that he was familiar with the usual and customary rates of compensation paid to brokers on a sale of a business, as apart from the sale of real estate, and that such rate was ten per cent, on sales of $5,000 or less, and in excess of that five per cent. No testimony was offered by defendant in contradiction. Defendant insists that under the complaint the plaintiff was demanding judgment quantum meruit and not upon an express contract, and that the testimony above indicated, if proper in an action based upon an express contract for the payment of a commission, was not proper evidence of reasonable value in quantum meruit. There is cited in this behalf the case of Hinton v. Coleman, 45 Wis. 165. There- the complaint alleged that the services of plaintiff in negotiating a sale of defendant’s real estate were worth three per cent.'of the purchase price and that such was the customary rate in the city where the sale was made. Plaintiff alone testified as to such rate, while three other witnesses, real-estate brokers, testified there was no uniform custom to pay such rate or any other fixed sum. This court in dis
Defendant also argues that whereas the plaintiff testified that in preparing the inventory and details for presenting the matter of the proposed sale to prospective purchasers he worked on Sundays as well as evenings, that such violation of the statute prohibiting labor on, Sunday made the entire transaction void and should prevent recovery. No claim is made that the contract for compensation or the closing of the transaction between defendant and the purchaser were either of them done in violation of this statute, and the objection is without substance.
It is further urged that the verdict must be held perverse because the jury added to the five per cent, of the sale price
By the Cmtrt. — Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Simonsen v. Froedtert Lumber Company
- Status
- Published