Parks v. " MR. FORD"

• Decision Date: 10 January 1975
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 72-639 and 73-1699.
• Citation: 386 F. Supp. 1251
• Parties: Gilbert PARKS et al. v. "MR. FORD" d/b/a Ford's Speed Shop et al. William MULDOWNEY, Jr., et al. v. INTERNATIONAL CYCLES, INC., et al.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

386 F. Supp. 1251

Gilbert PARKS et al. v. "MR. FORD" d/b/a Ford's Speed Shop et al.

William MULDOWNEY, Jr., et al. v. INTERNATIONAL CYCLES, INC., et al.

Civ. A. Nos. 72-639 and 73-1699.

United States District Court, E. D. Pennsylvania.

December 11, 1974.

As Amended December 13, 1974.

Supplemental Opinion January 10, 1975.

David A. Scholl, Chester, Pa., for plaintiffs.

Thomas E. Waters, Jr., Andrew E. Wakshul, Norristown, Pa., for defendant North Penn Motors.

OPINION AND ORDER

FOGEL, District Judge.

Plaintiffs, in these consolidated actions, assert that the retention and sale elements of the "repairmen's lien" created by the common law and statutes of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania¹ violate the Fourteenth Amendment, to the extent that lienors are permitted to deprive persons of the use or ownership of their property without prior judicial determination of the validity of the underlying claim.

Before us are those aspects of plaintiffs' motions for "partial summary judgment" (pursuant to Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure),² which raise the dual issues of the constitutionality of the challenged case and statutory law, and of the right to possession of property which may be subject to the repairmen's lien. Damage claims against the individual defendants have been held in abeyance, pending a ruling on these motions.

Discussion of the issues and the reasons in support of our conclusions in this matter follow:

1. Procedural History of the Consolidated Actions and Summary of the Facts

The procedural history of the litigation is complex because of the addition and elimination of various parties during these proceedings. Accordingly, we shall summarize only those claims of plaintiffs who are still parties to this action; the controlling facts are set forth in the affidavits submitted in support of the motions for partial summary judgment:

1. Plaintiff Gilbert Parks took his 1963 Chrysler automobile to Ford's Speed Shop, owned by defendant Henry Ford, a/k/a "Mr. Ford", on or about February 4, 1972. Parks claims that he authorized the replacement of a transmission seal, a job which he estimated would cost about Thirty Dollars ($30.00). After a delay of more than two weeks, he was notified that the work was completed, but that the bill (which included replacement of a convertor, a pump, and a rotor), would be Two Hundred and Three Dollars ($203.00). Parks protested these charges, and Ford retained possession of the automobile. After this action was brought in Federal Court, Ford started suit in the Municipal Court of Philadelphia, and recovered a judgment against Parks in the amount of One Hundred and Twenty-five Dollars ($125.00). Parks paid the amount of the judgment and regained possession of the automobile. Although Parks has no present claim with respect to the quality of the repairs, he still seeks damages for the alleged improper detention of his automobile.

2. Plaintiff Hattie Ellerbe had her 1960 Chevrolet towed to Bradley's Automobile Service, operated by defendant Alfred Bradley, Sr., on or about January 30, 1972. Ellerbe claims that she merely asked for an estimate for work to be performed, and did not authorize Bradley to repair the vehicle. Bradley later notified her that he had actually made the repairs, and that the charges totaled Four Hundred and Ninety-three Dollars and two cents ($493.02). Ellerbe refused to pay this amount; Bradley retained the automobile, and notified her, through counsel, that he was asserting a repairmen's lien under the applicable Pennsylvania statute. Thereafter, the automobile was placed on the street by Bradley, and when located by Ellerbe it had been stripped of its wheels and other parts. While the detention issue is moot, Ellerbe continues to press her damage claim.

3. Plaintiff Lewis Williams brought his 1966 Chevrolet Corvair to Erwin Chevrolet, Inc., late in the month of April of 1972. Williams claims that he arranged to purchase a starter motor elsewhere, and that Erwin agreed to install this motor for a labor charge of Twelve Dollars ($12.00). In fact, Erwin installed a rebuilt motor, and billed Williams for Forty-eight Dollars and fifty-five cents ($48.55). Williams refused to pay this charge; Erwin retained possession of the automobile, and notified him that unless the full amount was paid, the automobile would be placed with a storage and salvage company. Williams was joined as a plaintiff in this action on June 26, 1972, and shortly thereafter he regained possession of his vehicle by agreement of counsel. The automobile is no longer in Williams' possession, but he continues to press his damage claim for improper detention.

4. Anne Dillon, mother of plaintiff Lois Dillon, purchased a 1966 Chevrolet from defendant North Penn Motors, Inc., on or about June 25, 1971.³ North Penn had granted to plaintiff a thirty-day warranty for mechanical defects, during which period, North Penn had agreed to pay fifty percent (50%) of the cost of necessary repairs. Shortly after the automobile was purchased, plaintiff had trouble with the transmission. After a delay, due to a labor dispute at North Penn Motors, plaintiff's automobile was repaired, at a cost to her of approximately One Hundred and Ninety-three Dollars ($193.00). However, she was billed for an additional amount of approximately One Hundred and Ninety-eight Dollars ($198.00) for replacement of wheels and tires which had been stolen from the automobile while in storage at the North Penn Motors used car lot, before execution of the work. Dillon refused to pay the entire amount claimed, and North Penn Motors retained the automobile. On June 26, 1972, Judge Masterson ordered the return of the automobile to Dillon, pending final disposition of the case, subject to entry of a bond in the amount of One Hundred Ninety-two Dollars and eighty cents ($192.80). Dillon furnished the bond, and still has possession of the automobile. Her continued right to possession, and her substantial claim for detention damages are still in dispute.

5. Plaintiff William Muldowney, Jr. brought his 1962 Triumph motorcycle to the shop of defendant, International Cycles, Inc., during the month of September, 1972. Muldowney authorized repairs of a gasket and an oil pump, conditioned upon an outside cost of Fifty Dollars ($50.00). After considerable delay, Muldowney was notified on or about April 1, 1973, that the motorcycle had been completely rebuilt and that the bill was in excess of Four Hundred Dollars ($400.00). Muldowney refused to pay this amount, and International retained possession of the motorcycle. After Muldowney began this action, International offered to return the motorcycle; plaintiff subsequently learned that International lost its lease, and that his motorcycle had been reduced to shattered pieces of metal that were strewn about the shop, now owned by one Edward Labelle. No responsive pleadings have ever been filed by International. Although plaintiff has not recovered possession of his motorcycle, he clearly would not accept the scrap that is the residue; his claim for damages, rather than for the right to continued possession, is not only proper, but the only sensible one that he could assert under the circumstances.

2. Summary of the Challenged Common Law and Statutory Provisions

The challenged repairmen's lien has evolved through case law and statutory enactments. In Pennsylvania, one who repairs a chattel, at the request of the owner, or of his or her authorized agent, has a common law lien which gives that person the right to retain possession of the chattel until payment is received. Wilson v. Malenock, supra at n. 1, 128 Pa.Super. at 547, 194 A. 508. The classic description of the common law lien is that given by Mr. Justice Woodward in a case which was decided by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in 1878:

It has long been a settled rule of the common law, that goods deposited with a tradesman or artizan for manufacture or repair, are subject for the work done on them to a specific lien. Thus, a tailor who has made a suit of garments out of the cloth delivered to him, is not bound to deliver the suit to his employer until he is paid for his services. Neither is a ship carpenter bound to restore the ship which he has repaired; nor a jeweler the gem which he has set, or the seal which he has engraved; nor an agistor the horse which he has taken on hire, until their respective compensations are paid. Story on Bailments, § 440, and the cases there cited. Though the right of lien probably originated in those cases in which there was an obligation, arising out of the public employment, to receive the goods, it is not now confined to that class of persons. A particular lien is given by the common law to any one who takes property in the way of his trade or occupation to bestow labor and expense upon it. And it exists equally whether there be an agreement to pay a stipulated price, or only an implied contract to pay a reasonable price: 2 Kent's Com. 635 * * * Mathias v. Sellers, 86 Pa. 486, 491, 27 Am.Rep. 723 (1878).

It is clear, however, that the common law lien confers upon the lienor only the right of retention of the chattel until the underlying debt is paid; at common law no right to sell exists. That remedy is a creature of statute. R. Brown, The Law of Personal Property § 119 (2d. ed. 1955); Smyth v. Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland, 125 Pa.Super. 597, 602, 190 A. 398 (1937), aff'd per curiam 326 Pa. 391, 192 A. 640, 111 A.L.R. 481.⁴ Indeed, the sale of the chattel by the lienor is a conversion, if such sale is executed without a statute authorizing foreclosure by this means, or if there is a failure on the part of the seller to comply meticulously with all of the procedural and substantive provisions of the governing statute. Brown, supra, at § 119; Bernstein v. Hineman, 86 Pa.Super. 198, 201 (1925); Boys Novelty Suit Co. v. Garfield, 76 Pa. Super. 365 (1921).

The...