Jones v. Harner

• Court: Indiana Appellate Court
• Writing for the Court: RUCKER
• Citation: Jones v. Harner, 684 N.E.2d 560 (Ind. App. 1997)
• Decision Date: 27 August 1997
• Docket Number: No. 27A05-9701-CV-34,27A05-9701-CV-34
• Parties: Carvey JONES, Appellant-Plaintiff, v. Myron V. HARNER d/b/a/ Harner'S Service Center, Appellee-Defendant.

Page 560

684 N.E.2d 560

Carvey JONES, Appellant-Plaintiff, v. Myron V. HARNER d/b/a/ Harner'S Service Center, Appellee-Defendant.

No. 27A05-9701-CV-34.

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

Aug. 27, 1997.

Dean A. Heinold, Rebecca Harper, UAW-GM Legal Services Plan, Marion, for Appellant-Plaintiff.

OPINION

RUCKER, Judge.

Plaintiff-Appellant Carvey Jones appeals the trial court's judgment in favor of Defendant-Appellee Myron Harner d/b/a Harner's Service Center on Jones's complaint for replevin and conversion. Jones also appeals the court's ruling in favor of Harner on Harner's counterclaim to enforce a mechanic's lien and for judgment in the amount of $9,099.00 plus attorney's fees. Jones raises several issues for our review which we rephrase as whether the trial court erred in granting judgment for Harner. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

On April 28, 1993, Jones was involved in an accident in which he drove his vehicle into the side of Sherry's Lounge in Marion, Indiana. The vehicle remained embedded in the building for several days until the owner of the lounge contacted Harner to remove it. Harner towed the vehicle to his place of business where he held it pending contact from its owner. Two weeks later Harner received a telephone call from a person he believed to be the car's owner. The person asked about the towing and storage charges which had accumulated on the vehicle and indicated that he would be in to pick up the vehicle the following Saturday. The man did not appear on the day scheduled. Thereafter on June 30, 1993, Harner placed a telephone call to Jones in which he informed him of the towing and storage charges and indicated that he would release the vehicle upon payment of the charges. Jones did not dispute imposition of the charges and instead agreed to obtain a release of the vehicle the next Saturday. When Jones failed to appear on Saturday and for several months thereafter Harner initiated several telephone calls to Jones and his attorney in an attempt to obtain payment of the charges. On each occasion Harner was assured that Jones would obtain release of the car on a date certain. However each time Jones failed to appear. Finally, on July 12, 1994 Harner sent to Jones by certified mail a document entitled "Notice of Intent to Hold Mechanic's Lien" along with a letter indicating Harner's intent to sell the vehicle if the towing and storage charges were not paid within ten days. Jones did not respond to the notice and instead on December 22, 1994 he filed a complaint against Harner for replevin and conversion, seeking return of the vehicle along with damages and attorney's fees. On February 28, 1995, Harner answered the complaint and filed a counterclaim alleging the existence of a mechanic's lien against the vehicle in the amount of the accumulated towing and storage charges. Harner alleged that the mechanic's lien defeated Jones's claims of replevin and conversion and that in addition Harner was entitled to judgment against Jones in the amount of the towing and storage charges plus reasonable attorney's fees. After a bench trial the court entered judgment in favor of Harner on Jones's complaint and also ruled in favor of Harner on the counterclaim. The court determined that Harner held valid possessory and non-possessory liens against Jones's vehicle and that Harner was entitled to judgment in the amount of $9,099.00 for the towing and storage charges plus $2156.00 in attorney's fees. The court sua sponte entered findings of fact and conclusions of law in support of its judgment. This appeal ensued. ¹

Where as here the trial court sua sponte enters findings of fact and conclusions of law, we treat the verdict as a general one with the findings controlling only as to those issues they cover. Matter of S.T., 621 N.E.2d 371, 373 (Ind.Ct.App.1993). A general judgment will be affirmed upon any legal theory consistent with the evidence, and the court of review neither reweighs the evidence nor judges the credibility of witnesses. Id. A general judgment will be reversed on appeal only when it is clearly erroneous. Id.

Jones contends the trial court erred in granting judgment for Harner. According to Jones, Harner did not obtain valid possessory or non-possessory liens against Jones's vehicle and rather his retention of the vehicle was unauthorized and subject to claims of replevin and conversion.

Mechanic's liens, although previously recognized at common law, are now creatures of statute. Terpstra v. Farmers and Merchants Bank, 483 N.E.2d 749, 756 n. 6 (Ind.Ct.App.1985), trans. denied. Indiana recognizes two species of mechanic's liens related to motor vehicles. The first is known as a possessory lien. The lien is possessory because it is perfected by the retention of possession of the vehicle by the person who performed the repairs or storage. See Hendrickson & Sons Motor Co. v. Osha, 165 Ind.App. 185, 331 N.E.2d 743, 754 (1975), reh'g denied, (discussing similar provisions of former statute). The lien was long recognized at common law and is now codified at Ind.Code § 9-22-5-15. That statute provides that an individual, firm, limited liability company or corporation that performs labor, furnishes materials or storage or does repair work on a motor vehicle at the request of the person who owns the motor vehicle has a lien on the vehicle to the reasonable value of the charges for the labor, materials, storage or repairs. I.C. § 9-22-5-15.

By contrast the second species of mechanic's lien is known as non-possessory because it...