Phoenix Lumber Co. v. Regents of the University of Idaho
| Decision Date | 08 September 1908 |
| Citation | 197 F. 425 |
| Parties | PHOENIX LUMBER CO. v. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Idaho |
Post Avery & Higgins, for plaintiff.
Forney & Moore, for defendant.
Upon the ground that the complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action, the demurrer must be sustained. The plaintiff sues as the assignee of James A Colson & Son, and, apart from the formal allegations of corporate existence and of jurisdictional facts, the charge is:
'That on or about March 30, 1907, the defendant was indebted to James A. Colson & Son * * * in the sum of three thousand dollars ($3,000.00), which sum was then and there due and payable from said defendant to said James A. Colson & Son.'
Assignment, demand for payment, and refusal to pay are averred, but neither directly nor indirectly does the plaintiff plead the facts or circumstances upon which the claim of indebtedness is based. By subdivision 2 of section 4168 of the Revised Statutes of Idaho it is provided that a complaint, among other things, must contain 'a statement of the facts constituting the cause of action in ordinary and concise language. ' While brevity in pleadings is to be commended, the Code contemplates that the ultimate facts, as distinguished from mere conclusions, shall be detailed with sufficient particularity to apprise the defendant of the basis of the plaintiff's claim. For the plaintiff to allege that the defendant is indebted to him, without setting forth when, where, or how the indebtedness arose, is not a statement of 'the facts constituting' a cause of action, and, in effect, is little more than a demand for judgment. Swanholm v. Reeser, 3 Idaho (Hasb.) 476, 31 P. 804. The reason of the rule applies with great force in a case where, as here, it is sought to charge indebtedness upon a party whose functions are special, and whose legitimate activities are measurably circumscribed. It is therefore thought that the plaintiff, in order to state a cause of action, must set forth the facts out of which the assigned indebtedness arose with sufficient detail and completeness to disclose an obligation within the scope of defendant's authority, and a fulfillment by the plaintiff and its assignor of the conditions precedent to its right successfully to maintain the suit.
It is further contended by the defendant that this is in effect, a suit against the state of Idaho, and therefore it cannot be maintained. By an act of the Legislature of the Territory of Idaho, approved January 30, 1889 (Laws 1888-89, p. 17), the University of Idaho was established at the town of Moscow, and its government was vested in a Board of Regents, to be appointed by the Governor. 'The Board of Regents,' it was provided, 'shall constitute a body, corporate by the name of 'The Regents of the University of Idaho, and shall possess all the powers necessary or convenient to accomplish the objects and perform the duties prescribed by law, and shall have the custody of the books, records, buildings and other property of said University. ' The board elects its own president, secretary, and treasurer, whose duties are similar to those of corresponding officers in private corporations. By-laws may be adopted by the board prescribing specific rules for the conduct of its officers and fixing the amount of the treasurer's bond. It is also vested with power to enact laws for the government of the University, to make expenditures for the erection of suitable buildings, and for the purchase of apparatus and library, and to employ and discharge professors and instructors. 'The treasurer of said board,' the act provides, 'shall, out of any moneys in his hands belonging to said board, pay all orders drawn upon him by the president and secretary thereof, when accompanied by vouchers fully explaining the character of the expenditure. ' At the close of each fiscal year the Regents, through their president, are required to report in detail to the Governor the progress, conditions, and wants of the University, the amount of receipts and disbursements, and such other information as may be deemed to be important. The object of the University is 'to provide the means of acquiring a thorough knowledge of the various branches of learning connected with scientific, industrial and professional pursuits.'
By section 10 of article 9 of the Constitution of Idaho, it is provided that:
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