Public-domain · open source
OpenJurist

1 S.W.2d 591

Bulin v. Smith

Texas Commission of Appeals

Decided January 18, 1928

Texas Commission of Appeals · decided 1928-01-18

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

“It has been held in a number of well-considered cases, and we think correctly so, that the above-quoted provision of the statute does *Page 461 not apply to issues in the case which are independent causes of action in themselves or controlling and independent grounds of recovery, or independent grounds of defense, but that it applies only to such omitted issues as are in accord with, and supplemental or incidental to, and which support, the issues of fact which were submitted and found by the jury, and upon which the judgment is based. It will be observed that the statute provides that such an issue not submitted and not requested is deemed `as found by the court in such manner as to support the judgment,' but it does not provide that such omitted issue or finding shall in itself form the basis for the judgment as an independent ground of recovery, but only in support of the judgment properly found and based on a recoverable ground. The language used clearly implies that such unsubmitted and unrequested issues could not form an independent and original basis for the judgment, but only shall be found in such manner as to support the judgment. That this is the proper construction and meaning of article 2190 is made clear also by the provisions of articles 2185, 2186, and the first part of article 2190 quoted above.”

quoted by 1 later decision, including Maryland Casualty Co. v. Long

Relies on Kirby Lumber Company v. Conn · Galveston, H. & S. A. Ry. Co. v. Price · Citizens' Nat. Bank of Brownwood v. Texas Compress Co.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1928-01-18

How this case has been cited

Cited by 4 later decisions — most recently November 1951

4 state decisions

201928193019401950decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

SPEER, J.

¶1The writ of error has been granted herein to review the holding of the Court of Civil Appeals upon a question of practice with reference to the submission of cases upon special issues. The, report of the opinion of the Court of Civil Appeals will be found in 294 S. W. 317, and the question of practice is made clear by the assignment of error upon which the writ was granted, as follows:

¶2“The Court of Civil Appeals erred in not sustaining- petitioners’ second proposition and the assignments to which it relates, and in refusing to reverse the judgment of the district court on the grounds stated in said .proposition, that is, that the district court erred in finding that the consideration for the surrender and cancellation of the notes in controversy was inadequate, for the reason that, the defendant in error having alleged that the transfer of the notes was without consideration, or, if for a consideration, that the consideration was inadequate, the first issue only having been submitted to the jury and decided in petitioners’ favor by the verdict, they were entitled to judgment thereon. The question as to whether or not the consideration was inadequate was an independent issue and ground of recovery, and, the district court not having submitted the same to the jury, and defendant in error not having requested the submission thereof, it was waived and the action of the district court in finding that the consideration ivas inadequate as a matter of law was not authorized, and erroneous.”

¶3Since the submission of this cause before us, the Supreme Court has rendered a written opinion in refusing a writ of error in Ormsby v. Rateliffe, 1 S.Wi.(2d) 1084, which is decisive upon the question of practice referred to. In that case it is said:

¶4“In this case, and in a number of other cases, it is insisted' and has been urged that the provision of the statute wherein it is provided that ‘An issue not submitted and not requested is deemed as found by the court in such manner a's to support the judgment, if there is evidence to sustain such finding,’ includes and applies to all unsubmitted issues in a case, and that such an issue is not waived, and cannot be waived, by a mere failure to request its submission. when the omitted issue constitutes a complete ground of recovery or a complete defense, a failure to request a submission of that issue waives said ground of recovery or said ground of defense. Kirby Lumber Co. v. Conn, 114 Tex. 104, 263 S. W. 902; San Antonio Public Service Co. v. Tracy (Tex. Civ. App.) 221 S. W. 637; Texas Drug Co. v. Cadwell (Tex. Civ. App.) 237 S. W. 968 [976]; G. H. & S. A. Ry. Co. v. Price (Tex. Com. App.) 240 S. W. 524, 528; Texas City Transportation Co. v. Winters (Tex. Com. App.) 222 S. W. at p. 543; Citizens’ National Bank of Brownwood v. Texas Compress Co. (Tex. Civ. App.) 294 S. W. 331, 337, 338 (writ of error refused).”

¶5Whatever uncertainty there has been upon this question is now definitely settled. Article 2190 of the statute (Rev. St. 1925), it will be observed, declares:

¶6“An issue not submitted and not requested is deemed as found by the court,” etc.

¶7Whereas the decisions deciding this question of practice are to the effect that a cause of action or ground of defense not submitted nor requested to be submitted must be held to have been waived. There is a marked distinction between a mere “issue” in a case and a “ground of recovery or defense.” This distinction is accentuated especially in the Ormsby-Ratcliffe opinion.

¶8The assignment of error quoted in the beginning of this opinion, therefore, must be-sustained. We think the other questions presented in the application for writ of error were rightly disposed of, for the reasons stated in the opinion of the Court of Civil Appeals.

¶9We therefore recommend that the judgments of the trial court and of the Court of Civil Appeals permitting a recovery by defendant in error for the sum of $1,090 with interest, same being the amount found by the trial court upon a defense not submitted nor requested to be submitted, be Reversed, and judgment be here rendered in favor of plaintiffs in error.

CURETON, C. J.

¶10Judgments of the district court and Court of Civil Appeals both reversed, and judgment rendered for plaintiffs in error, as recommended by the Commission of Appeals.

/1/sw2d/591 · .json · Public domain