Frederick F. Faville

The case concerned whether the Battens' $1,000 payment on principal of a promissory note secured by a mortgage on real estate, made to the original payee Smith after he had transferred the note and mortgage to Holden, should be credited against the note. The Iowa Supreme Court reversed the lower court's decision, ruling that the payment was not binding on Holden. The court held that the Battens bore the burden of proving Smith was Holden's authorized agent to collect principal (as opposed to interest), which they failed to meet because the note was not produced at payment, there was no evidence of actual agency or ostensible authority, and records of other dealings were insufficient to establish the required authority.

property

The case involved a dispute over a promissory note and mortgage on appellants' homestead that they delivered to broker Smith to sell for cash, with proceeds to pay off an existing building and loan mortgage. Smith instead transferred the note and mortgage to appellee Baker to satisfy Smith's own prior debt, without paying off the prior mortgage. Appellants claimed the transfer involved fraud and breach of authority by Smith, but the court determined that Baker was a holder in due course under Iowa Code sections 9516 and 9518 because he had no actual knowledge of any title defect and his actions did not amount to bad faith. The court reasoned that the instruments were made payable to Smith and placed in his possession, giving him apparent authority to negotiate them, and Baker's reliance on Smith's statements that the prior mortgage had been cleared did not constitute bad faith. The district court judgment was affirmed.

propertybusiness & regulatory

The case concerned a challenge to a petition filed to call an election on establishing a municipal court in Sioux City under Code section 10643, which required signatures from at least 15 percent of the qualified electors as shown by the poll list from the last municipal or state election. The dispute centered on whether 'poll list' referred to the permanent registration list of all qualified voters or only the certificates of registration documenting those who actually voted. The court interpreted the term to mean the records of actual participants in the election, based on provisions in Chapters 475 and 39-B1 of the Code that equate poll lists or poll books with the certificates returned after voting in permanent-registration cities. It concluded that the petition met the statutory threshold under this definition and affirmed the trial court's dismissal of the challenge.

electionsprocedure

The case involved a manslaughter charge against Elva L. Long for the death of Martha Stull, who was struck by his automobile while stepping off a stopped streetcar on University Avenue in Des Moines. Long was driving at an estimated 40-50 miles per hour, passed the streetcar, and caused severe injuries that led to Stull's death hours later. The Iowa Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, holding that the short-form indictment was valid, the evidence was sufficient to present a jury question on the facts, and there were no prejudicial errors in the admission of evidence, jury instructions, opening statements, or other trial rulings.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved a bank receiver suing a former director and depositor to recover proceeds from two certificates of deposit that the director had transferred before the North English Savings Bank closed in 1928. In one transaction, the director assigned a $2,000 certificate to the bank's president in exchange for a personal note secured by collateral; in the other, he exchanged a $3,500 certificate for a new certificate from another bank. The receiver relied on prior precedent holding bank officers accountable for withdrawals from insolvent institutions, and the court assumed the bank was insolvent at the time but found no fraud or bad faith. The court held that the transactions were ordinary business dealings in due course, with the transferees providing full value without collusion, and therefore declined to extend trustee liability to the director. The trial court's dismissal of the receiver's petition was affirmed.

business & regulatory

The case involved a contract dispute between a paving company and a property owner over the construction of a driveway, where the written agreement set a price per square foot with specific payment terms and required the company to repair any defects at its own expense within five years. After the driveway was built, the owner made payments but not strictly on the dates specified, later giving a note for the balance; when defects appeared, the owner sought damages for repair costs via counterclaim. The court held that the proper measure of damages was the reasonable cost of repairs rather than any difference in property value, as the contract expressly provided for such repairs. It also ruled that the exact timing of payments was not a condition precedent to the repair obligation, since time was not made of the essence in the contract and the parties had accepted the delayed payments and note by their conduct. The judgment in favor of the owner on the counterclaim was affirmed.

business & regulatoryproperty