Prince v. Packer Manufacturing Company
Decision Date | 18 November 1969 |
Docket Number | No. 17604.,17604. |
Citation | 419 F.2d 34 |
Parties | Ben C. PRINCE, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. PACKER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, Defendant-Appellant. |
Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit |
James H. DeVries, James H. Ryan, Richard M. Sawdey, Chicago, Ill., for defendant-appellant; McBride, Baker, Wienke & Schlosser, Chicago, Ill., of counsel.
J. Norman Goddess and Ben C. Brostoff, Chicago, Ill., for plaintiff-appellee.
Before CASTLE, Chief Judge, HASTINGS, Senior Circuit Judge, and GORDON, District Judge.1
This diversity action was removed from an Illinois state court to the federal district court. An amended complaint was filed by Ben C. Prince against Packer Manufacturing Company. Plaintiff sought recovery of sales commissions under an oral agreement with defendant. Plaintiff was to represent defendant in the promotion and development of sales of its printing presses in the greater Chicago area. Defendant counterclaimed for the recovery of commissions previously paid plaintiff under the oral agreement.
Following a bench trial, the district court entered its findings of fact and stated its conclusions of law. Based thereon, plaintiff was awarded judgment against defendant in the total sum of $11,172.16. The trial court denied defendant's counterclaim for $5,497.05. Defendant appeals from the money judgment in favor of plaintiff but does not appeal from the dismissal of its counterclaim. We affirm.
At all times relevant herein defendant's business, based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, was the manufacture and sale of printing presses and related equipment to customer specifications. For many years plaintiff was engaged in the sale of printing equipment and supplies in the greater Chicago area. Early in 1961, defendant had no sales representation in the Chicago region.
On May 20, 1961, by written letter agreement, defendant offered to pay plaintiff a commission of ten per cent on his sale of any of four specified demonstration machines it had on hand. In this letter defendant stated that it had not arrived at a definite decision concerning the employment of a sales representative in the greater Chicago area; that plaintiff was not to disclose to customers that he was representing defendant; and that he was merely acting as an agent in the sale of the four units.
Within a few months after May 20, 1961, plaintiff and defendant's representative, Farrell Sickel, engaged in a series of conversations which culminated in the oral sales agreement in question.
At issue on this appeal are certain findings of fact by the trial court interpreting the terms of the oral agreement and applying such terms to commissions found payable on sales to Mohawk Tablet Company (Mohawk) and Patio Paper Products Co. (Patio). Defendant charges that certain of such critical findings should be set aside as being clearly erroneous pursuant to Rule 52(a), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Title 28 U.S.C.A.2
A great host of reviewing courts have announced guidelines with many variants to be applied in determining whether findings of fact by trial courts are clearly erroneous within the meaning of Rule 52(a), supra. Perhaps fundamental to all such standards is an early declaration by this court in Fox River Paper Corporation v. United States, 7 Cir., 165 F.2d 639 (1948). Speaking for the court, Judge Minton (later Mr. Justice Minton) said: Id. at 640.
In Pleason v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, 7 Cir., 226 F.2d 732 (1955), the late Judge Lindley wrote for us that it is for the trial court "to weigh the evidence, draw inferences and declare the result * * * and our only function is to determine whether the findings are clearly erroneous, that is whether upon the whole record, there is substantial evidence to support them and whether the court erred as to the law." Id. at 733. See also Zeddies v. C. I. R., 7 Cir., 264 F.2d 120, 126 (1959); Wisconsin Memorial Park Co. v. Commissioner of Int. Rev., 7 Cir., 255 F.2d 751, 754 (1958).
The latest expression by our court on the basic considerations underlying Rule 52(a), supra, is that of Chief Judge Castle in Graubremse GMBH, etc. v. Berg Manufacturing & Sales Co., etc., 7 Cir., 417 F.2d 1201, at page 1203: "
Our present consideration requires mention of one major variant from these basic standards. Under the clearly erroneous rule in civil actions an appellate court cannot upset a trial court's factual findings unless it is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed. Guzman v. Pichirilo, 369 U.S. 698, 702, 82 S.Ct. 1095, 8 L.Ed. 2d 205 (1962).
However, as stated by Mr. Justice Reed in United States v. United States Gypsum Co., 333 U.S. 364, at 395, 68 S.Ct. 525, 92 L.Ed. 746 (1948): "A finding is `clearly erroneous' when although there is evidence to support it, the reviewing court on the entire evidence is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed." See also United States v. Singer Mfg. Co., 374 U.S. 174, 194-195, fn. 9, 83 S.Ct. 1773, 10 L.Ed.2d 823 (1963); Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Duberstein, 363 U.S. 278, 291, 80 S.Ct. 1190, 4 L.Ed.2d 1218 (1960); Wisconsin Screw Co. v. Fireman's Fund Insurance Co., 7 Cir., 297 F. 2d 697, 698 (1962).
We first consider defendant's challenge to Finding No. 12, which interprets the oral agreement and reads:
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