Hawkins v. Gresham
| Decision Date | 10 May 1888 |
| Citation | 6 S.E. 472,85 Va. 34 |
| Parties | Hawkins v. Gresham. |
| Court | Virginia Supreme Court |
Appeal—Jurisdictional Amount—How Determined.
In Virginia, under the provision of the constitution, an appeal will not lie to the supreme court where the amount actually in dispute, exclusive of costs and interest beyond the date of the decree, falls below $500. The jurisdiction is determined, not by the amount which may come in question, but by the amount of plaintiff's claim, or that by which defendant can discharge himself; and this must not only be of the value of $500, but the controversy in relation to matter of that value must be continued on appeal.
Appeal from circuit court of city of Danville.
P. A. L. Smith and Rosewell Page, for appellant.
Peatross & Harris, for appellee.
This is an appeal from a decree of the circuit court for the town of Danville rendered on the 19th day of September, 1887. The bill in this cause was filed by the appellee, on behalf of himself and all other creditors who should come in, etc., to set aside certain deeds executed by the appellant as actually fraudulent. The claim of the plaintiff was, principal and interest, exclusive of costs, $207.30; and, an account of all liens being taken and reported, they jointly aggregated a total of $297.96, principal and interest, exclusive of costs. There was a decree for the plaintiffs, and for the renting out of the lands of the defendant by a receiver to pay the said debts, whereupon the defendant appealed to this court. There is a motion here to dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction; the amount of the decree against the defendant being purely pecuniary, and falling below the jurisdictional sum of $500. And this is the first question to be here determined. As has been often said, we will say again, the jurisdiction of this court is limited by the constitution to an amount not less than $500. The amount actually in dispute is the criterion of jurisdiction. The plaintiff's claim determines the jurisdiction on his side, and the amounts adjudged or decreed to be paid by the defendant ascertains it on his. In calculating the amount involved in the decree appealed from, all costs are excluded, and interest is not estimated beyond the date of the decree. The matter in controversy must not only be of the value of $500, but the controversy in relation to matter of that value must be continued by the appeal; and it has been held in this court that, although the action was for more...
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Steinman v. Clinchfield Coal Corp.
...defendant is reg ulated by the amount decreed against him, or declared to be a lien on the land. Fink v. Denny, 75 Va. 663; Hawkins v. Gresham, 85 Va. 34, 6 S. E. 472; Cook v. Bondurant, 85 Va. 47, 6 S. E. 618; Smith and Wife v. Rosenheim, 79 Va. 540; Patteson v. McKinney, 88 Va. 748, 14 S.......
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Hicks v. Roanoke Brick Co
...City of Lynchburg, 33 Grat. 37; Fink v. Denny, 75 Va. 663; Duffy v. Figgat, 80 Va. 664; Saunders v. Waggoner, 82 Va. 316; Hawkins v. Gresham, 85 Va. 34, 6 S. E. 472; Pitts v. Spotts, 86 Va. 71, 9 S. E. 501; Craig v. Williams, 90 Va. 500, 18 S. E. 899; Williams v. Clark, 93 Va. 690, 25 S. E.......
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Duncan v. State Highway Com.
...exception filed takes the place of a declaration, and the amount involved is the bona fide claim of the damages suffered. In Hawkins Gresham, 85 Va. 34, 6 S.E. 472, it is held that the jurisdiction is determined, not by the amount which may come in question, but by the amount of plaintiff's......
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Duncan v. State Highway Comm'n
...filed takes the place of a declaration, and the amount involved is the bona fide claim of the damages suffered. In Hawkins v. Gresham, 85 Va. 34, 6 S. E. 472, it is held that the jurisdiction is determined, not by the amount which may come in question, but by the amount of plaintiff's claim......