Johnson v. Holt

[108]

SHEPARD, J.

This is an appeal by plaintiff from a summary judgment entered in favor of defendants in an action brought by plaintiff seeking damages for alleged unlawful interference by defendants with the contractual relationship between plaintiff and his mother, Nora E. Johnson.

Plaintiff’s complaint alleges

inter alia

that plaintiff and said mother, some years previous to 1952, had entered into an agreement by which the parties thereto agreed to hold certain real and personal property in joint tenancy to the end that the survivor would become the sole owner thereof; that pursuant thereto the said parties did transfer into joint tenancy of record said real and personal properties; that on or about September 18, 1952, defendants did communicate to said mother certain false information for the wrongful and unlawful purpose of causing said mother to breach said agreement, knowing said information to be untrue; that pursuant to said wrongful purpose defendants caused an action to be brought in the superior court of San Diego County in the name of said mother (who was then incompetent) seeking to cause the termination of said contractual relationship; that certain allegations contained in said action were defamatory of this plaintiff, were untrue and known by these defendants to be untrue; and that in defending said action this plaintiff sustained damage, including loss of personal time, costs, expenses and attorney’s fees in amounts detailed therein. Plaintiff prays actual and punitive damages. This court in a previous appeal affirmed the action of the trial court in permitting the filing of the amended complaint with which we are now dealing, and necessarily ruled that said amended complaint stated a cause of action. Said order, so ruling, has become final and is now the law of the case.

(Johnson

v.

Holt,

152 Cal.App.2d 338, 343 [lb] [313 P.2d 150].)

After remittitur, defendants answered and moved for a summary judgment under the provisions of Code of Civil Procedure, section 437c, and filed affidavits in support of said motion. In general effect, defendant’s affidavits assert that early in 1952 David H. Thompson (one of the defendants herein), acting as the attorney for said mother, requested of this plaintiff'an accounting of this plaintiff’s handling of said mother’s assets, and that this plaintiff refused such accounting ; that said Thompson did advise said mother of this plaintiff’s refusal to account for her share of income from the joint tenancy property, but denies that he did at any time advise her of any of the other false statements. Said affijayifs further