Wood v. Robertson
Decision Date | 14 January 1952 |
Docket Number | No. 1,No. 42136,42136,1 |
Citation | 245 S.W.2d 80 |
Parties | WOOD v. ROBERTSON et al |
Court | Missouri Supreme Court |
Neale, Newman, Bradshaw, Freeman & Neale, Springfield, Fields & Low, John F. Law, Lebanon, for appellant.
A. P. Stone, Jr., Sam M. Wear, Springfield, A. W. Landis, Robert L. Hyder, West Plains, for defendants Page Robertson and Dorothy Robertson.
Stewart & Turner, Sam M. Wear, Springfield, Green & Green, West Plains, for defendant Albert L. Patterson, Jr.
VAN OSDOL, Commissioner.
Plaintiff Edna Faye Wood and her husband Bennie F. Wood instituted this action stating their respective claims in two counts to recover the aggregate amount of $70,000 for personal injury to and loss of sevices of the wife stated to have been occasioned by a collision of motor vehicles. March 8, 1948, at a street intersection in Springfield. An ambulance, allegedly owned and operated by defendants Page and Dorothy Robertson, in which ambulance plaintiff was riding as a passengerpatient, collided with an automobile owned and operated by defendant Albert L. Patterson, Jr.
Defendants pleaded inter alia that they had settled plaintiffs' claims, and that plaintiffs had received amounts in the total sum of $675 agreed upon in settlement and had executed releases. Plaintiffs by reply alleged the releases were executed by plaintiffs in reliance on representations, relating to a doctor's statement or report of the nature and extent of the wife's injury, made by attorneys for defendants, which representations, it was stated, were false and were made with intent to deceive. The trial court ordered a separate trial of the issue of fraud in the procurance of the releases. Plaintiff husband by his counsel requested and the trial court ordered that the husband's claim be dismissed without prejudice as to all defendants. In the trial of the issue of fraud a jury found for plaintiff Edna Faye Wood. However, the trial court, on defendants' separate motions, set aside the verdict; entered judgment for defendants in accordance with their former motions for a directed verdict; and in the alternative granted a new trial. Plaintiff has appealed.
The contentions of the parties call for a statement of the evidence of the representations averred as fraudulent and of the circumstances in which the representations were made. The case also requires an examination of the law relating to the questions of when and in what circumstances a person alleged to have been defrauded may rely on the representations of the alleged fraud-feasor. Plaintiff-appellant insists she introduced substantial evidence tending to show all of the essential elements of fraud. Defendants-respondents make the primary contention that, in the shown circumstances, plaintiff had no right to rely on the attorneys' statements and should not be permitted to say she was deceived.
Some cases use more words than others to outline the essential elements of fraud and deceit. Each case of the kind must be decided upon its own facts. Messina v. Greubel, 358 Mo. 439, 215 S.W.2d 456. And see Lowther v. Hays, Mo.Supp., 225 S.W.2d 708; Bertram v. Kempster, Mo.Sup., 216 S.W.2d 494; Nash v. Normandy State Bank, Mo.Sup., 201 S.W.2d 299; Jeck v. O'Meara, 343 Mo. 559, 122 S.W.2d 897. In the Lowther case this court quoted 37 C.J.S., Fraud, Sec. 3, page 215, as follows, In the instant case we are especially concerned with the element '(8)' of the quoted statement from Corpus Juris Secundum.
March 8th plaintiff, who had become ill while visiting her parents in Howell County, was being transported to Springfield in the Robertson ambulance. The ambulance and the automobile of defendant Patterson collided, as stated. After the collision plaintiff was taken to the Burge Hospital at Springfield. She was under the care of Dr. Arthur D. Knabb. Plaintiff remained in the Burge Hospital for fifteen days. According to the reocrds of the hospital, a radiological examination of plaintiff by X-ray, as of March 20th, disclosed there was 'a non-bony union of posterior elements of 5th lumbar vertebrae, characteristic of spondylolisthesis 1st degree.'
At the time of the alleged fraud, defendants Page and Dorothy Robertson were represented by A. P. Stone, Jr., an attorney of Springfield; amd defendant Albert L. Patterson, Jr., was represented by A. Ronald Stewart, an attorney also of Springfield.
About a week after the casualty and while plaintiff was yet in the hospital, her husband and one Paul Sifford, a brother-in-law, called on the attorney A. P. Stone, Jr., at his office. By deposition, plaintiff's husband testified of this first interview as follows, 'we just walked in, Paul Sifford knew you (Mr. Stone), and he introduced me to you, and we sat down and talked a little while, and you asked me how my wife was getting along, and then you said, well, it wouldn't be no fault of the ambulance, and you said that you knew the attorney that represented Patterson and you would introduce Mr. Sifford and I to him, which you did; we just talked a minute or so, and there wasn't much said, then you said there wouldn't be any need of employing an attorney, you said, 'Just wait until your wife gets out of the hospital and have Dr. Knabb to send me a copy of her illness, her injuries', you said, 'and I'm sure that Mr. Stewart will be more than fair and do the right thing by your people.'' The attorney Stone also requested plaintiff's husband to return to the office when plaintiff's doctor had made a report of plaintiff's physical condition.
April 22d, plaintiff and her husband came to Mr. Stone's office. They had Dr. Kanbb's report of plaintiff's injuries. In his report, dated April 21st, Dr. Knabb said plaintiff's injuries were Plaintiff's husband testified of this second interview as follows, Plaintiff testified that Mr. Stone said 'he would find out what Dr. Yancey found out was wrong with me if anything.'
Following this second interview Mr. Stone notified plaintiff of the date of an appointment with Dr. Yancey for a physical examination of plaintiff, and plaintiff, April 23d, accordingly reported to Dr. Yancey's office. Immediately after the examination, plaintiff had a conversation with Dr. Yancey 'about what his findings were on his report.' Dr. Yancey said
Dr. Yancey later reported to Mr. Stone the results of the doctor's examination, which report, as of April 23d, was as follows, X-rays reveal * * *' * * *'
The morning of May 1st, plaintiff's husband again went to Mr. Stone's office. The husband testified Mr. Stone had called him on the telephone and had expressed the desire to talk with him alone. Mr. Stone had theretofore received Dr. Yancey's report. Plaintiff's husband testified, 'when I come up to your (Mr. Stone's) office I asked you if you had got in touch with Dr. Yancey and you said you had, and I asked you what was said, and you told me that he said practically the same thing as Dr. Knabb, and I went ahead to tell you that he didn't explain to my wife what her condition was and that he said he would let you know her conditions. And you asked me about what I had spent...
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