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9 Port. 368

Stanley v. Hill

Supreme Court of Alabama

Decided June 15, 1839

Supreme Court of Alabama · decided 1839-06-15

Assumpsit. — This action was brought in the court below, by the defendant, against the plaintiffs. The declaration recites, that the plaintiffs in error, and one James Russel, who is not sued, executed the note on which the action is founded. At the return term of the writ, the plaintiffs in error pleaded in abatement, that the note on which the action was founded, was executed by them jointly, with James Russel, who was not sued in the action.

Cited by 1 later decisions — most recently January 1853

1 state decisions

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1839-06-15

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ORMOND, J. — It

¶1was a matter resting entirely on the discretion of the court, to permit the plaintiff below to withdraw his demurrer to the defendants’ plea, and theré-fore cannot be examined in this court, on error.

¶2The court did not err in rejecting the plea of the defendant, as it was perfectly frivolous, and presented no point, either in bar or abatement of the action. The plaintiff might have treated it as a nullity, a ml signed judgment for want of a plea; there could not, therefore, be error in rejecting it — (State vs. Williams, 3 Stewart’s Rep. 454.)

¶3By the act to regulate proceedings in law and equity in this State, passed in eighteen hundred and nineteen, the pleadings are required to be made up during the first week of the term. If this rule be not complied with, and there is no consent enlarging the tin e, the plaintiff’s suit may be dismissed for fail me to file his declaration, or judgment by default be entered for want of a plea, unless the court, in its discretion, on good cause shewn, should grant longer time. The rejection of the defendants’ plea, left them at the trial term undefended, and entitled the plaintiff to his judgment, unless the court, in the exercise of its discretion, should then permit a plea to be filed. This permission was refused, and if it were a question we could review, we could not say the discretion of the court was unwisely exercised.

¶4Let the judgment be affirmed.

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