AMANDA BURKS, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR,
v.
E. C. LANGSTON, DEFENDANT IN ERROR

Fla. | 1931-06-24
Ellis and Brown, J.J., concur., "Whitfield, P.J., and Terrell, J., concur in the opinion and judgment., Davis, J., dissents.
102 Fla. 155 Florida Supreme Court (1931) Positive Treatment
Also reported at: 135 So. 564
Cited by 4 cases

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Synopsis

In this contract dispute, Amanda Burks sued E. C. Langston to recover money he received for paying her property taxes. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed a directed verdict for the defendant, holding that Burks failed to establish her claim because her declaration did not allege the specific contractual basis for recovery and lacked supporting evidence.


Holding

The directed verdict for Langston was proper because Burks's declaration failed to allege the contractual basis for her claim, and there was a total lack of evidence to support the allegations actually made in her declaration. A plaintiff must recover on the case as made by the declaration, not on theories unsupported by the pleadings.


Key Quotes

“It is too well settled to require repetition that the plaintiff must recover on the ease as made by the declaration.”

Establishes the fundamental procedural rule that recovery must be based on the allegations in the pleadings, not on different theories supported only by parol evidence.

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Facts & Procedural History

Langston contracted to purchase property from Burks for $15,750, payable in installments, with a provision that he would pay all taxes assessed after …

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Opinion of the Court
Buford, C.J.

Buford, C.J.

— In this case the plaintiff in error sued the defendant in error, the declaration containing one special count and five common counts. The special count of the declaration alleges in effect that the defendant received and retained certain money, the property of the plaintiff, for the specific purpose of paying certain taxes assessed against *156the property of the plaintiff which was being purchased by the defendant.

There was evidence to show that the defendant had contracted to purchase the property under the following terms:

“And the said party of the second part hereby covenants and agrees to pay the said party of the first part the sum of FIFTEEN THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND FIFTY, dollars payable in the following manner:
$2850.00 on or before October 1st, 1928 $2850.00 on or before October 1st, 1929 $2850.00 on or before October 1st, 1930 $2850.00 on or before October 1st, 1931 $2850.00 on or before October 1st, 1932
The above amounts shall bear interest at 8% per annum, payable semi-annually, on the whole sum, remaining from time to time unpaid.”

And in the contract it was provided as follows:

“Said party of the second part covenants and agrees to pay all taxes, assessments or impositions that may be legally levied or imposed upon said land subsequent to the year of 1927.
The 1927 taxes, that is the City, State and County taxes, shall be prorated as of October the 1st, 1927, the amount of said taxes being based upon the 1926 taxes, and this amount shall be deducted from the cash payment of $1500.00 set forth as the original cash payment in this contract.”

The cash payment of $1500.00 is not elsewhere mentioned in the contract. The record shows that the defendant paid plaintiff $942.11 at the .time of the execution of the contract and that the contract was never performed. That is, deferred payments mentioned in the contract were never paid and it appears that the contract was abandoned.

The declaration does not declare on the contract. There is parol evidence to show that the defendant made a parol agreement with the plaintiff to pay the 1927 taxes, but the declaration does not declare upon a breach of the contract of defendant to pay that part of the 1927 taxes which he *157agreed fo pay for tbe plaintiff. It is too well settled to require repetition that the plaintiff must recover on the ease as made by the declaration. There was a total lack of evidence to support the allegations of the declaration and, therefore, there was no error in directing a verdict in favor of defendant.

The judgment should be affirmed and it is so ordered.

Affirmed.

Ellis and Brown, J.J., concur.

"Whitfield, P.J., and Terrell, J., concur in the opinion and judgment.

Davis, J., dissents.

Davis, J.,

(dissenting) : — -The procedure was not proper on a demurrer to the evidence. Also, the plaintiff had a clear right to a non suit before the jury retired. I agree with the opinion as to the merits but cannot approve the apparently grossly irregular procedure. Ruling on non suit is error.

Dissent
Davis, J.,

Davis, J.,

(dissenting) : — -The procedure was not proper on a demurrer to the evidence. Also, the plaintiff had a clear right to a non suit before the jury retired. I agree with the opinion as to the merits but cannot approve the apparently grossly irregular procedure. Ruling on non suit is error.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Carter v. Fla. Power & Light Co., 138 Fla. 220 (Fla. 1939)
    …45 So. 507; McKinnon v. Lewis, 60 Fla. 125, 53 So. 940; Onyx Soda Fountain Co. v. L'Engle, 53 Fla. 314, 43 So. 771; Stevens v. Tampa Electric Co., 81 Fla. 512, 88 So. 303; Varnes v. S. A. L. R. R. Co., 80 Fla. 624, 86 So. 433; Burks v. Langston, 102 Fla. 155, 135 So. 564; Smith Richardson & Conroy v. Tampa Electric Co., 82 Fla. 79, 89 So. 352; Florida East Coast Ry. Co. v. Davis, 96 Fla. 171, 117 So. 842; Stover v. Stovall, 103 Fla. 284, 137 So. 249; Biscayne Trust Co. v. Pennsylvania Sugar Co., 10…
  • Kemp v. Cecilie Skivesen, 114 Fla. 667 (Fla. 1934)
    …Buford, J. — This case is now before us on appeal from final decree in favor of appellee here. The case was heretofore considered by this Court. See Skivesen v. Brown, 101 Fla. 1385, 135 Sou. 564. The judgment in that case was: “The decree should be reversed and the cause remanded, with directions that a decree be entere'd not inconsistent with this opinion. It is so ordered.” In that case we said: “It appears that the decree was rendered…

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