State Ex Rel. Whyte v. Gray

• Decision Date: 13 September 1934
• Citation: 116 Fla. 510,156 So. 493
• Parties: STATE ex rel. WHYTE v. GRAY et al.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

156 So. 493

116 Fla. 510

STATE ex rel. WHYTE v. GRAY et al.

Florida Supreme Court

September 13, 1934

En Banc.

Original proceeding in prohibition by the State, on the relation of R Whyte, against Dewitt T. Gray, as judge of the Circuit Court of Duval County, and another.

Writ of prohibition absolute denied and proceeding dismissed.

COUNSEL Twyman & McCarthy, of Miami, and Robert H Anderson, of Jacksonville, for petitioner.

J. W. Harrell and W. P. Dineen, both of Jacksonville, for respondents.

OPINION

DAVIS Chief Justice.

In an action on a promissory note for the principal amount of $10,300 signed by one H. A. Hubbard, as maker, it appeared by the pleadings that one R. Whyte, who was sued as indorser on such note, had, by the terms of his indorsement, expressly limited his liability on the note to $2,000. The action was brought against Hubbard and Whyte in the circuit court of Duval county and in such suit the maker and indorser were joined as defendants, as is specially authorized by a statute. See section 6819, Comp. Gen. Laws, section 4733 Rev. Gen. St.

Under the terms of chapter 8521, Acts of 1921, Laws of Florida there has been created in Duval county a civil court of record, which court has been vested with jurisdiction in all cases at law wherein the matter in controversy does not exceed, exclusive of interest and costs, the sum or value of $3,000. The effect of the statute creating the civil court of record is to deprive the circuit court of Duval county of original jurisdiction in all cases at law wherein the matter in controversy is less than $3,000.

By an original proceeding in prohibition brought in this court, the sole question raised for our determination is whether, in an action on a promissory note for $10,300, the maker of same, who is properly sued in the circuit court for the whole amount of the principal of the note, can be joined under section 6819, Comp. Gen. Laws, section 4733, Rev. Gen. St., with another defendant sued as indorser on such note, when the maker's liability for the principal sum of $10,300 is admittedly within the jurisdiction of the circuit court, but the indorser's liability, by reason of an express embodiment in the instrument, is limited to $2,000, which is an amount not ordinarily within the jurisdiction of a circuit court, but within the jurisdiction of a civil court of record created by chapter 8521, Acts of 1921, when it appears that such civil court exists in the county wherein the suit is instituted.

In the case pending in the circuit court against Hubbard, the maker of the note, and Whyte, the indorser, the defendant Whyto asserted want of jurisdiction to proceed in the controversy because it appeared that by the terms of his indorsement on the $10,300 note, he, the indorser, had expressly limited his liability as indorser to not exceeding $2,000, which latter amount Whyte contended was exclusively cognizable by a suit at law in the civil court of record.

Under section 11 of article 5 of the Constitution of Florida circuit courts have exclusive original jurisdiction in all causes at law not cognizable by inferior courts. But by the same section of the Constitution, circuit courts may also exercise jurisdiction in 'such other matters as the Legislature may provide.' So it is plain, therefore, that, while section 11 of article 5 of the Constitution is a grant of exclusive jurisdiction to circuit courts in all cases at law not cognizable by inferior courts, such section is not necessarily a limitation on the judicial power of the circuit court to exercise jurisdiction in 'such other matters...