Finseth v. Scherer

• Court: Supreme Court of Minnesota (US)
• Citation: 165 N.W. 124,138 Minn. 355
• Docket Number: 20,563
• Parties: C. H. FINSETH v. J. C. SCHERER, JR
• Decision Date: 23 November 1917

165 N.W. 124

138 Minn. 355

C. H. FINSETH
v.
J. C. SCHERER, JR

No. 20,563

Supreme Court of Minnesota

November 23, 1917

Action in the municipal court of Minneapolis to recover $130 on a promissory note. The defense is stated in the third paragraph of the opinion. The case was tried before Charles L. Smith, J., who at the close of the testimony granted plaintiff's motion for a directed verdict. From an order denying his motion for a new trial, defendant appealed. Affirmed.

SYLLABUS

Bills and notes -- recovery.

1. Negotiable paper, executed as part of a transaction with a foreign corporation doing business in this state in violation of the laws relating to foreign corporations, may be enforced by a bona fide purchaser thereof.

Amendment of complaint -- admission of evidence -- exclusion of exhibits.

2. It was not error for the trial court to allow an amendment of the complaint at the trial; nor to permit the cashier of a bank having personal knowledge of the fact to testify that a depositor had checked out the entire amount to his credit; nor to exclude exhibits offered solely for the purpose of contradicting a witness upon an immaterial point.

Brady, Robertson & Bonner, for appellant.

Lancaster, Simpson & Purdy and James E. Dorsey, for respondent.

OPINION

[138 Minn. 356] TAYLOR, C.

The municipal court of the city of Minneapolis directed a verdict for plaintiff in a suit upon a promissory note, and defendant appealed from an order denying a new trial.

Section 6206, G.S. 1913, provides that: "Every foreign corporation for pecuniary profit, before it shall be authorized or permitted to transact any business in this state * * * or [165 N.W. 125] to acquire, hold, or dispose of property within this state, or to sue or maintain any action at law or otherwise in any of the courts in this state," shall comply with certain prescribed conditions; and section 6208, G.S. 1913, further provides that: "Every such foreign corporation * * * which shall neglect or fail to comply with the foregoing conditions shall be subject to a fine of one thousand dollars to be recovered before any court of competent jurisdiction; * * * and no corporation which shall fail to comply with the foregoing provisions shall maintain any suit or action, either legal or equitable, in any of the courts of this state, upon any demand, whether arising out of contract or tort." The statute excepts from its operation certain classes of corporations not here important.

The Co-operative Wheat Ranch Company is a West Virginia corporation which was doing business in this state without having complied with the conditions prescribed by the statute, and which employed the [138 Minn. 357] A.C. Bohrnstedt Company, a Minnesota corporation, to make sales of its capital stock. The Bohrnstedt Company sold some of the capital stock of the Wheat Ranch Company to defendant, and received the note in controversy for a part of the purchase price of the stock. The note contained nothing upon its face to show that it was connected in any way with any transaction of the Wheat Ranch Company. It was made payable to the Bohrnstedt Company, was sold and indorsed by that company to the State Bank of Lafayette before maturity, and was transferred by the bank...