Rochester's Suburban Lumber Company v. Slocumb

• Decision Date: 06 December 1968
• Docket Number: No. 41163,41163
• Citation: 163 N.W.2d 303,282 Minn. 124
• Parties: ROCHESTER'S SUBURBAN LUMBER COMPANY, Appellant, v. Charles H. SLOCUMB, et al., Respondents.
• Court: Minnesota Supreme Court

Page 303

163 N.W.2d 303

282 Minn. 124

ROCHESTER'S SUBURBAN LUMBER COMPANY, Appellant, v. Charles H. SLOCUMB, et al., Respondents.

No. 41163.

Supreme Court of Minnesota.

Dec. 6, 1968.

Syllabus by the Court.

1. The evidence upon the record herein does not support the existence of separate contracts, one calling for the supplying of materials for, and construction of, a house and the other calling merely for the supplying of material for shelving.

2. As a general rule, in the absence of contrary evidence, separate orders and successive deliveries under an original estimate or arrangement will be considered related parts of an entire contract, forming a single account for the purpose of establishing a lien. The evidence in the case at bar clearly is sufficient to support a finding that the parties acted under the original contract rather than a separate contract for the redwood boards acquired from plaintiff by the contractor on March 23, 1965.

3. The purpose of the mechanics lien statute is to protect laborers and materialmen, and a liberal construction should be accorded it to accomplish that purpose. The law is based upon the concept that he whose property is enhanced in value by the labor and toil of others should be made to respond in some way by payment and full satisfaction for what he had secured. Unless there are good and sufficient reasons to the contrary, labor and industry should not be hampered by technicalities or harsh interpretations of what was evidently intended to be a just law for their protection and benefit.

Brown & Bins, Rochester, for appellant.

O'Brien, Ehrick, Wolf & Deaner, Michael Berens, Rochester, for respondents.

Heard before KNUTSON, C.J., and NELSON, MURPHY, PETERSON, and FRANK T. GALLAGHER, JJ.

OPINION

NELSON, Justice.

This is an appeal from a judgment for defendants in a mechanics lien foreclosure action. In 1964 defendants Charles H. Slocumb and Mary C. Slocumb engaged the services of an architect to design a house. They selected building contractor Thornton G. Egner of Rochester, Minnesota, then doing business as Four Star Builders, to build the house.

Plaintiff, Rochester Suburban Lumber Company, was at the time engaged in retailing lumber and building materials. The contractor, Egner, began ordering lumber supplies from plaintiff on October 14, 1964. The record indicates that specifications were not shown to the plaintiff and that the material was from time to time ordered on a piece-by-piece basis. A running account was kept and it appears that the account was very active to January 14, 1965. Some goods were returned on February 15, 1965.

The owners moved into their home on February 26, 1965. Thereafter, on March 23, 1965, an employee of Egner picked up three large redwood boards at plaintiff lumber company to be used for shelving on the west wall of the recreation room after they had been given the same mill work treatment as had some previously installed shelves on the east wall of the recreation room. It appears that the contractor arranged for the mill work and delivered the finished product to defendants' garage. They were installed by Joseph J. Weichselbaum, the architect, and Dr. Slocumb personally on brackets which Mr. Weichselbaum had purchased separately.

The record is not clear as to when the house was completely finished, for various finishing work was performed by Egner's men up to and after March 23, 1965. The final item furnished by plaintiff was an oak board, costing $2.40, which was sold June 18, 1965, and was used by Egner to cover a wall crack. Plaintiff's mechanics lien was prepared June 17, 1965, and filed June 18, so it did not include the oak board.

In about May or June 1965, it became apparent to the owners that Egner was not paying bills for supplies. At that time they owed Egner $4,320.77. Defendants later paid this amount to various suppliers, but plaintiff did not receive any payment on its account, which according to the mechanics lien statement amounted to $2,299.64, with interest thereon from May 23, 1965.

The trial court held that plaintiff's lien statement was only effective for the March 23 delivery in the amount of $30.10. Plaintiff appealed, contending the judgment should have been for the full amount claimed under the lien statement it filed June 18, 1965. ¹

1. The court below appears to have accepted defendants' claim that the original contract called for the supplying of materials for, and construction of, the house, including installation of items such as bookshelves by the contractor, whereas the subsequent transaction on March 23, 1965, was a separate transaction for the supply of lumber materials because Dr. Slocumb intended to install the shelves himself. This reasoning does not substantiate the finding of a separate contract upon the record before us.

There is nothing in the record to indicate affirmatively that either Egner or his employees were unwilling to install the bookshelves pursuant to the contract with the Slocumbs. The installation appears to have been so minor that Dr. Slocumb preferred to do it himself with the assistance of the architect, who saw to it that the proper brackets were provided. It is to be noted that Egner not only procured the lumber from plaintiff but also had the boards planed and finished to match the other bookshelves which were installed under the original contract. It seems most likely that since defendants Slocumb were already dealing with plaintiff through the contract with Egner they decided to obtain the boards under the same arrangements. This inference is further supported by the fact that when an additional piece of lumber was required for the house on June 18, 1965, defendants went to plaintiff, who supplied it and charged its cost of $2.40 to the contractor's account. We conclude that the evidence is insufficient upon the record before us to support the existence of separate contracts, one calling for the supplying of materials for, and the construction of, the house and another contract calling merely for the supplying of material for shelving.

The fact that defendants were occupying the house approximately a month previous to March 23 is not presuasive that the original contract to complete the house was fully consummated. Defendants cite Villaume Box & Lbr. Co. v. Condon, 146 Minn. 156, 178 N.W. 492, but in that case the house was found to be completed upon occupancy, the building contractor in that case having specified that it would be complete upon occupancy and acceptance. There was no evidence of any such agreement here. The record indicates that defendant owners admitted there were several things to be done subsequent to the occupancy.

Plaintiff cites several facts appearing in the record which clearly tend to indicate the house was not completed before March 23, 1965, and that boards were then supplied pursuant to the original contract. First, defendants' exhibit D, a letter from the architect to the owner dated February 2, 1966, included a list of additions and deletions received from the contractor up to January 6, 1965, which resulted in a cost increase of $1,386, and a second list of additions and deletions received from the contractor to May 11, 1965, resulting in a further cost increase of $775.57. The latter contains 10 changes, including '(a)dd 3 shelves, rec. rm. (including hdwr.) $46.00' and '(a)dd extra shelves, rec. rm. $16.00.' The architect testified that these changes were for the shelves on the west and east walls of the recreation room respectively. The next change was '(a)dd shelves and hardware in study $46.92.' Shelving was thus added three different times.

Second, lien statements filed by others who furnished labor or materials in the construction of the house indicated May 26, 1965, and May 21, 1965, as the last dates on which these claimants had furnished labor or material. In both cases the final work was completed 3 months after the house was occupied. These liens were paid in full by defendants.

Third, after a payment by defendants to the contractor on February 16, 1965, the unpaid balance due, as adjusted to May 11, 1965, was $4,320.77. While no part of this was paid directly to the contractor, that amount was paid to various unpaid suppliers after May 11, 1965.

Fourth, Dale Fagerlind, a carpenter for the contractor, testified that he was involved in the finishing of the house, that the house was not fully completed on February 26, 1965, and that finishing work involving lumber was required. Fagerlind visited the house several times after March 23 to make adjustments, purchasing and using whatever materials were required, and he had to install a new mailbox slot. He testified when he delivered the shelves to the house another carpenter was finishing up who might have installed the shelving.

Fifth, the architect testified there was no shelving in the original contract; that after the owners moved in, they finished the floor in the recreation room, including the floor covering; and that they then decided to use the room as a den and installed more bookcases.

Sixth, Mrs. Slocumb testified that some of the shelving was put in the recreation room shortly after they moved in and the rest of it was installed somewhat later.

Seventh, as late as June 18, 1965, the additional piece of lumber was ordered by the contractor from plaintiff. While the cost, $2.40, was small, plaintiff submits it was part of the original operation and evidence the job was not fully completed on March 23, 1965. A similar situation may be found in Kahle v. McClary, 225 Minn. 239, 96 N.W.2d 243.

Finally, Mr. Weichselbaum, the architect, testified that the house was basically completed and ready for occupancy on or about February 10, 1965, but that there were some unfinished items. He testified on cross-examination that the plans for the west wall bookshelves were made prior to the occupancy of the house, which further indicates that the boards...