Harding v. American State Bank

• Decision Date: 14 December 1923
• Docket Number: 18153.
• Citation: 221 P. 599,127 Wash. 484
• Court: Washington Supreme Court
• Parties: HARDING v. AMERICAN STATE BANK.

221 P. 599

127 Wash. 484

HARDING v. AMERICAN STATE BANK.

No. 18153.

Supreme Court of Washington

December 14, 1923

Department 1.

Appeal from Superior Court, Adams County; Brinker, Judge.

Action by C. F. Harding, administrator of the estate of O. G Harding, deceased, against the American State Bank. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Reversed in part, with directions to enter judgment for defendant.

G. E. Lovell, of Ritzville, and E. A. Davis, of Pasco, for appellant.

John A Peacock, of Spokane, and W. O. Miller, of Ritzville, for respondent.

MACKINTOSH J.

The respondent, as administrator of the estate of his deceased father, in this action against the appellant bank sets out two causes of action in his complaint; in the first alleging that the bank had received at divers times between August 20 1920 and February 1, 1922, various deposits from the respondent, as administrator, and that on the last-named date $5,124.46 remained on deposit, and that the bank had refused to pay this amount or any part thereof to the respondent. The second cause of action states that at divers times and places the respondent, as administrator, had delivered to the appellant certain promissory notes, the property of the estate, and that the bank had converted them and retained the proceeds, amounting to $5,270.30, and refused to pay that amount upon demand.

A great deal of irrelevant matter made its appearance in the trial of this case, but in spite of this the facts are very simple and present the following situation: O. G. Harding, on November 1, 1919, made a chattel mortgage to the appellant covering a great amount of personal property located on his farm in Adams county, together with a mortgage upon the crop to be grown thereon during the year 1920. The mortgage was properly filed on November 8, 1919, and states that it was given to secure the sum of $10,000, evidenced by two notes of $5,000 each, dated November 5, 1919, and payable one year after date, with interest at 10 per cent. per annum. In August, 1920, O. G. Harding died, and the respondent was soon thereafter appointed administrator of his estate. The appellant and the respondent considered what was most advantageous to do for all concerned in regard to the chattel mortgage. Both parties were consulting, so far as the legal phase of this matter is concerned, the same attorney. The result of the consideration was that on October 19, 1920, a public sale was made of the mortgaged personal property under an arrangement whereby the proceeds of such sale should be applied upon the mortgage debt. The mortgaged wheat was sold under a similar arrangement. At no time has any suggestion been made that the sale did not take place under the most advantageous conditions, and that a fair and adequate price was not obtained. As a matter of fact, the record shows that the sale was an exceptionally good one from the standpoint of both parties to this litigation. The amount received from the wheat was $4,750, and from the personal property cash in the sum of $2,875 and notes in the amount of $3,470.30. The appellant, under the arrangement, was entitled to retain...