Poswa v. Jones

California Court of Appeal Apr 5, 1913 No. Civ. No. 1198.Published

Before: Hall

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Holding. The court held that while a trial court's finding of fact was technically insufficient due to its reliance on legal conclusions, the defendants were not prejudiced because the evidence did not support a higher damage award. The court further held that the plaintiff was not entitled to costs because the final recovery was under $300, and that no judgment should have been entered against the partnership entity itself.

Issues

Whether a trial court's finding of fact that incorporates legal conclusions is sufficient to support a judgment.
Whether a defendant can complain of a faulty finding when the evidence does not support a more favorable outcome.
Whether a plaintiff is entitled to costs when the final recovery is less than $300.
Whether a judgment may be entered against a partnership entity when the complaint only names the individual partners.

Disposition. reversed and remanded with directions

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“Technically this, we think, must be conceded to be true. The finding is very much like a finding that all the material allegations of a complaint are true. Such a finding has been held to be insufficient as a finding of fact to support a judgment.”

“no costs can be allowed in an action for the recovery of money or damages when the plaintiff recovers less than three hundred dollars”

“we think that appellants are technically correct in their contention, and no judgment should have been entered against “American Dry Color Co.””

Synopsis

Trial—Finding That Allegations oj? Counterclaim are True.—A finding that allegations of counterclaim which the defendants were entitled to plead and set off against the plaintiff’s cause of action were true is a conclusion of law rather than a finding of fact, but although faulty, it is not prejudicial to the defendants in this case.

Id.—Omission to Find on Affirmative Defense.—When the findings support the judgment, an omission to find upon an affirmative defense cannot be complained of by a defendant, unless the record discloses some evidence that would support a finding in his favor.

Id.—Costs—Recovery Under Three Hundred Dollars.—It is error to award costs to a plaintiff when his recovery is reduced to less than three hundred dollars by the defendant’s counterclaim.

Id.—Partnership—Judgment Against Members of Firm.—A judgment against individual members of a firm may be enforced against the firm assets.

Id.—Pleading—Allegations as to Partnership—Judgment Against Firm.—Where a partnership is named as a defendant in the caption of a complaint, but the allegations of the complaint charge only the individuals named as defendants, though describing them as copartners doing business under the firm name, judgment should not be entered against the partnership in its firm name.

HALL, J.

This is an appeal by defendants from a judgment rendered against them for the sum of $150.37, and costs taxed at $128.60.

Plaintiff sued to recover of defendants the sum of $663.17 as the unpaid balance of the price of certain oil sold by the Sterling Paint Company, a corporation, to defendants, copartners doing business under the firm name and style of American Dry Color Co. The claim of the Sterling Paint Co. was assigned to plaintiff. The complaint was unverified.

The defendants answered, and besides denying the allegations of the complaint, pleaded various counterclaims. One of these counterclaims set up a claim for fifteen dollars, for commissions earned by defendants in selling two barrels of oil for the Sterling Paint Company.

Another set up a claim for $22.28 for goods sold to said company by defendants.

[666]

The others set up claims for damages arising out of breach of warranties as to quality of oil alleged to have been sold to defendants by the Sterling Paint Company, before the assignment to plaintiff, aggregating the sum of upwards of nine hundred dollars. In each case the oil had been resold by defendants upon the same warranty, and defendants had been obliged to pay to their vendees the amount of damage claimed. In one ease the amount of the damage in the sum of $341 had not been ascertained nor paid by the defendants to their vendee until after the beginning of the action, but in each case the sale and breach of warranty had occurred before the assignment to plaintiff.

The court found all the allegations of the first count of plaintiff’s complaint to be true. (The second count contains a statement in another form of the same claim, and may be disregarded.)

The court also found “That each and all of the allegations set forth in defendants’ last amended answer are true and. correct, save and except that said defendants suffered and sustained loss and damage in the sum of five hundred twenty-five and 40/100 ($525.40) dollars, and no more, by reason of the facts set forth and complained of in said defendants’ last amended answer and counterclaims, and which the said defendants are entitled to plead as a defense and set-off against plaintiff’s cause of action, herein found to be true.”

Poswa v. Jones

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Synopsis

HALL, J.

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