Donovan v. Root

STURTEVANT, J.

The plaintiff as an attorney at law commenced an action against the defendants to recover a

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judgment for services rendered. He pleaded his claim in the form of a common count. The defendants answered and a trial was had before the trial court sitting without a jury. The court made findings in favor of the plaintiff and from the judgment entered thereon the defendants have appealed and have brought up typewritten transcripts. The defendants make the contention that the judgment for $10,000 is excessive. That claim involves the following facts: The defendants were the owners of a large number of parcels of real estate and also of an automobile. Taking the values as estimated by the defendants said properties were of a value of over $500,000. The automobile was not paid for and under their contract they owed $1900 on it and were in default in their payments. On the parcels of real estate the defendants had executed encumbrances in such sums and on such of their properties that no one parcel was free and clear and the aggregate encumbrances on the real estate amounted to over $185,000 and each encumbrance was either past due or the defendants were in default as to their interest. On one piece of property the taxes were delinquent and the defendants owed in taxes and penalties $1,200. Some of the properties were owned in common with a niece and that niece had commenced partition proceedings against the defendants. In addition to that litigation the defendants were involved in several other pieces of litigation. They retained the plaintiff as their attorney to take charge of their affairs. Thereafter he proceeded to represent the defendants in the pieces of litigation that were pending and those matters have each and all been settled.

During the same period of time the plaintiff undertook to get each encumbrance renewed or to get it extended for the defendants to act. Failing in any of those attempts he then tried to get others to take over each encumbrance. And, failing in that effort also, he attempted to refund the indebtedness of the defendants by negotiating a transfer to be made on such terms that each of the defendants would receive an annuity during her life. The evidence introduced by the plaintiff was to the effect that the plaintiff so acted in negotiating said transfer and obtaining said annuity at the special instance and request of the defendants. But the evidence of the defendants was to the effect