S. T. Enterprises, Inc. v. Brunswick Corp.
| Decision Date | 21 February 1973 |
| Docket Number | No. 57157,57157 |
| Citation | 294 N.E.2d 722,10 Ill.App.3d 705 |
| Parties | S. T. ENTERPRISES, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. BRUNSWICK CORPORATION, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
George W. Hamman, Mayer, Brown & Platt, Chicago, for defendant-appellant.
Maurice L. Davis, Samuel S. Berger, Chicago, for plaintiff-appellee.
The plaintiff, S. T. Enterprises, Inc., brought this action in the Circuit Court of Cook County on November 4, 1971, seeking a declaration of rights and an injunction restraining the Brunswick Corporation from seizing certain bowling equipment of which the plaintiff is presently in possession. It was alleged that Brunswick claimed the right to possess the equipment under a judgment in its favor against Thunderbird Bowl, Inc., S. T.'s predecessor in interest, and that Brunswick intended to have the equipment seized by the Sheriff of Cook County. It was further alleged that were the equipment to be seized, irreparable injury would result to the plaintiff's business.
A hearing was held on December 2, 1971, and a temporary injunction was entered restraining Brunswick from seizing the equipment or instituting any action in replevin for its possession. Following this, the plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment, requesting a permanent injunction. Brunswick filed a motion to dismiss, asserting that the plaintiff had failed to establish any right to relief. A hearing was had on January 10, 1972, at which the trial court granted the plaintiff's motion and entered an order finding that Brunswick was not entitled to possession of the equipment and permanently enjoining Brunswick from seizing it through any process issued upon its judgment against Thunderbird Bowl or from instituting any replevin action for its possession. At this hearing the court also denied Brunswick's motion to dismiss, and Brunswick appealed.
The facts which give rise to this controversy are as follows. In 1962 thunderbird Bowl, Inc., and other interested parties created a bowling establishment in Mount Prospect, Illinois. In connection with this, they purchased 36 bowling lanes and related equipment from Brunswick under a conditional sales contract and note. In February, 1966, payments on the note were discontinued, and shortly thereafter Brunswick demanded repossession of the equipment. At this time there was a balance due under the conditional sales contract of $379,690. In October, 1966, Thunderbird Bowl and others filed suit against Brunswick seeking damages for fraud and breach of warranty and reformation of the conditional sales contract. In April, 1967, Brunswick filed a replevin action seeking possession of the equipment and, by subsequent amendment, other relief. In its replevin affidavit Brunswick valued the equipment at $74,000. The sheriff returned the replevin writ 'found', and Thunderbird gave a forthcoming bond of $148,000 and retained possession of the equipment.
In October, 1967, while the above actions were pending in the trial court, Thunderbird transferred its interest in the equipment to S. T. Enterprises, the plaintiff herein. S. T. took possession of the equipment with knowledge of the pending litigation, that it had not been paid...
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S. T. Enterprises, Inc. v. Brunswick Corp.
...but modified it to provide that the injunction order be conditioned upon S.T.'s payment to Brunswick of the sum of $92,243.05. (10 Ill.App.3d 705, 294 N.E.2d 722.) We have allowed Brunswick's petitions for leave to appeal, and, although separately briefed and argued, the causes were ordered......