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24 Ala. 428

Summerlin v. Dowdle

Supreme Court of Alabama

Decided January 15, 1854

Supreme Court of Alabama · decided 1854-01-15

Tried before the Hon. Ezekiel Pickens. James Dowdle, for the use of Alexander MeDade, brought an action of debt against Michael J. Summerlin, and, after service of the capias, declared against him in his own name and right; and after one continuance by the plaintiff, judgment by nil dicit was rendered against the defendant.

Relies on Turner v. Brown

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1854-01-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 7 later decisions — most recently June 1954

7 state decisions

2018541860187018801890190019101920193019401950decided

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.

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LIGON, J.

¶1The judgment entry in the court below, as it was corrected on the motion to enter judgment nunc pro tunc, shows that the defendant in that court appeared by his attoi ney, and at the term at which the judgment was rendered that attorney withdrew his appearance when the case was called, and the “ defendant made no further defence.” This was at the second term after the return of the writ, and consequently long after the declaration must have been filed under the rules of practice in the Circuit Courts of this State. Under these circumstances, nil dicit was the proper judgment, and such, in effect, is the judgment in this record.

¶2The variance between the writ and declaration is only available on plea in abatement, and the latter might have been amended by reference to the foraer. As the judgment is one of nil dicit, and not by default, the plaintiff in error cannot be allowed to *429take advantage of such variance on error, in this court. After judgment by nil dicit, all defects in the writ and declaration which could have been amended in the court below, are cured by our statute of jeofails. — Clay’s Digest 821 § 50 ; Turner v. Brown, 9 Ala. 866.

¶3As all the assignments of error rest on the same foundation, it is only necessary to add that the judgment of the court below is affirmed.

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