State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Worley, 5531

• Decision Date: 05 May 1961
• Docket Number: No. 5531,5531
• Parties: STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, Relator, v. Hon, Jeff WORLEY, Justice of the Peace Precinct 4, Winkler County, Texas, and Jerry Eddy, Respondents.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

Page 407

346 S.W.2d 407

STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, Relator, v. Hon, Jeff WORLEY, Justice of the Peace Precinct 4, Winkler

County, Texas, and Jerry Eddy, Respondents.

No. 5531.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas, El Paso.

May 5, 1961.

McDonald, Shafer & Gilliland, Odessa, for relator.

John R. Lee, Kermit, for respondents.

ABBOTT, Justice.

This is an action brought by State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, relator herein, for a writ of prohibition against the Honorable Jeff Worley, Justice of the Peace of Precinct 4, of Winkler County, Texas, and Jerry Eddy, Respondents herein, to prevent the trial of Cause No. 114, styled Jerry M. Eddy v. State Farm Mutual Insurance Company, which is now pending in the Justice Court of Precinct 4, Winkler County.

The present controversy arose as a result of the following fact situation. On October 4, 1959, there was a two-car collision on State Highway 18, in Winkler County, in which an automobile being driven by respondent Jerry M. Eddy collided with another automobile being driven by Joseph L. Braimer. Several occupants of the Braimer vehicls suffered injuries as a result of the collision. The vehicle being driven by respondent Eddy on the occasion in question was a 1956 Chevrolet owned by Chester King and wife, Jessie Lee King, but which was being used with their permission by their son, Chester Leo King. Eddy was driving the car with the permission of the King boy, but had no permission from the owners, Mr. and Mrs. King, to drive the automobile.

A policy of automobile liability insurance on the 1956 Chevrolet had been issued by relator, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, to Chester King and wife, Jessie King, the name insured in such policy, affording coverage with limits of 10/20/5.

Following the collision, the occupants of the Braimer car sued Jerry Eddy for injuries sustained in the accident. Relator declined to defend the suits, contending that Eddy was not a permissive user of the vehicle, and that, under the terms and conditions of the policy, respondent Eddy was not an insured; and that relator, therefore, had no liability to Eddy, or on any judgment that might be entered against Eddy. The several suits brought against Eddy by the occupants of the Braimer car were consolidated and tried in the District Court of Winkler County as Cause No. 5754, styled Joseph L. Braimer et al. v. Jerry M. Eddy. In the trial of this cause, Jerry Eddy was defended by counsel of his own, but not by relator's counsel. On May 7, 1960, a judgment was entered against Jerry Eddy for $33,159.25, and such judgment has become final.

Respondent Jerry Eddy thereafter made a partial payment of $19.90 on the $33,000 judgment, and then filed a suit in the Justice Court of Winkler County, in which he alleged that a judgment had been recovered against him for $33,159.25 in the District Court case; plead that there was a certain policy of insurance issued by relator herein to Chester King which covered and inured to the benefit of plaintiff, Jerry Eddy; that he had paid the sum of $19.90 on such judgment, partially satisfying same, and therefore sued relator for reimbursement of the amount so expended.

After the Justice Court suit was filed by respondent, relator (State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company) then brought suit for a declaratory judgment, a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction, in the District Court of Winkler County, for the purpose of determining the liability, if any, of the relator to respondent, and on the judgment obtained by Joseph L. Braimer and others against the respondent Eddy, under the terms and provisions of the policy of insurance involved in this case. By such suit, relator also sought to enjoin and restrain the parties in the Justice Court from proceeding in that case, pending disposition of the declaratory judgment action in the District Court.

In looking at the origin of this case, it is found that the relator here made no attempt to intercede in the case of Braimer et al. v. Eddy, in Cause No. 5754 in the District Court of Winkler County. There was no appeal from this case, and the judgment became final. Thereafter, a payment on the judgment of $19.90 was made by Eddy, and was evidently accepted. Eddy brought suit in the Justice of the Peace court in Winkler County for the return of his $19.90, in that the relator had a policy of insurance that provided him coverage. Relator attempted to restrain respondent, through the District Court of Winkler County, from proceeding with the trial in Justice Court and, failing there, attempted to move such cause to the Federal court, with no success. Then, an action for Declaratory Judgment was filed in the Winkler County District Court to determine the rights of relator under the terms of the policy. Thereafter, relator applied to this court for a writ of prohibition, and a hearing was granted and a restraining order placed upon the Justice Court and respondent until such hearing.

We do not believe that this court had the authority to restrain the Justice Court, nor does it have the authority to issue the writ of prohibition. The writ of prohibition, or any other extraordinary writ, will not be granted where there is an adequate remedy provided by law, such as an appeal or writ of error. Clark v. Ewing et al., Tex.Civ.App., 196 S.W.2d 53. There must be a trial in the inferior court, and trial must result in a judgment disposing of all issues and parties, before appellate jurisdiction may attach. Constitution, Art. 5, secs. 3, 6, Vernon's Ann.St. The Constitution is specific in confiding trial jurisdiction to the district and county courts and other inferior courts. Texas Constitution, Art. 5, Secs. 8, 16 and 19. These provisions mean that those courts are to exercise that portion of the judicial power allocated to them, unimpeded by the supervision of any other tribunal except in so far as the powers of revision may be confided to other tribunals. The jurisdiction of these trial, or inferior, courts without exception embraces the power to hear and determine the matter in controversy according to established rules of law. Morrow v. Corbin, 122 Tex. 553, 62 S.W.2d 641, 644. Chief Justice Cureton, in the above case, further said:

'Again, jurisdiction is stated to be the authority by which judicial officers take cognizance of and decide causes, and this includes the power to determine the legal results to follow from the facts pleaded and proven.'

Briefly stated, what we intend to say is that the jurisdiction of the trial courts under the Constitution, once it attaches, embraces every element of judicial power allocated to those tribunals, and includes, '(1) the power to hear facts, (2) the power to decide the issues of fact made by the pleadings, (3) the power to decide the questions of law involved, (4) the power to enter a judgment on the facts found in accordance with the law as determined by the court, (5) and to execute the judgment or sentence.' * * * 'That with the right of the trial court to exercise the powers thus confided to it, no appellate court can intervene, except in accordance with the authority given in the Constitution or valid statutes thereunder.' Morrow v. Corbin, supra; Cleveland v. Ward, 116 Tex. 1, 285 S.W. 1063. The courts of civil appeals have no general power to grant writs to restrain what the courts of civil appeals might consider legally wrong acts, but have authority to issue only such writs as are necessary to enforce their jurisdiction. Vernon's Ann.Civ.Stat. Art. 1823; Pait v. International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, etc., Tex.Civ.App., 322 S.W.2d 349.

The only right this court would have to issue its writ of prohibition would be to protect its appellate jurisdiction. We would have no jurisdiction of a judgment in the Justice of Peace court involving $19.90, but the United States Supreme Court would have. In order to assume that our jurisdiction is imperiled, it seems that we must also assume that the Justice Court, in the present case, would ignore the arguments of relator that might be advanced in a plea in abatement or some other form, presented to it in order to maintain its jurisdiction. This, or any other court, can make no such assumption. A court which is authorized to issue extraordinary writs to enforce its jurisdiction may not exercise that power in aid of potential jurisdiction. Winfrey v. Chandler, 159 Tex. 220, 318 S.W.2d 59, and cases cited therein.

In the case at bar, the amount sued for is $19.90, an amount within the jurisdiction of the Justice Court. The prayer asks for no other relief. It is conceded that a judgment in this case will have the effect of interpreting liability under an insurance policy, as in the case of Bybee v. Fireman's Fund Ins. Co., Tex., 331 S.W.2d 910. We do not believe that this court has the authority to issue a writ of prohibition to the Justice Court and respondent in this case, however, because of the assumptions we must make in order to involve our jurisdiction.

We therefore dismiss the order temporarily restraining the Justice of Peace and respondent, and deny the application for writ of prohibition.

FRASER, Justice (concurring).

This writer concurs substantially with the opinion of Associate Justice ABBOTT, of this Court. While not in complete agreement with all the provisions of said opinion, I do believe that, substantially, it is correct, and such belief is based on the following conclusions:

1. The jurisdiction of the various courts of this state, including justice courts, has been carefully set up, and it has been judicially said that such jurisdiction must be such that the court involved is free to act within the limits of its power.

2. It may well be true that the action of the Justice of the Peace may, indirectly or directly, decide a lawsuit involving a sum of money far in excess of that court's jurisdiction. If this is true, such has come about...