MERCANTILE INVESTMENT & HOLDING CO., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, ALSO KNOWN AS MERCANTILE INVESTMENT AND HOLDING COMPANY, A FLORIDA CORPORATION,
v.
C. R. GILLILAND

Fla. | 1941-07-01
Brown, C. J., Whitfield and Thomas, J. J., concur.
147 Fla. 610 Florida Supreme Court (1941) Caution
Also reported at: 3 So. 2d 149
Cited by 5 cases

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Synopsis

Mercantile Investment & Holding Co. recovered a $50,000 judgment against C.R. Gilliland for unpaid salary based on an alleged ten-year employment contract. The Florida Supreme Court reversed, holding that the evidence was insufficient to establish either an express contract of employment or a valid claim for compensation under general assumpsit.


Holding

The evidence was wholly insufficient to prove an express contract of employment as alleged. The written agreement was not made to bind defendant to employ plaintiff but rather to ensure defendant a voice in managing Hollywood, Inc. Under general assumpsit, plaintiff failed to prove reasonable value of services, as the evidence showed he was paid for all services rendered to defendant.


Key Quotes

“The written agreement relied on by plaintiff was not made for the purpose of binding defendant to employ plaintiff. One of its purposes was to insure defendant a voice in the management of Hollywood, Inc. The defendant merely designated plaintiff to represent it in the stated capacities.”

Establishes that the written agreement was not an employment contract but rather a designation for representation purposes.

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Facts & Procedural History

Plaintiff claimed defendant agreed to employ him for ten years at $15,000 annually to serve as vice president, secretary, and board member of Hollywoo…

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Opinion of the Court
Adams, J.

Adams, J.

The plaintiff recovered a $50,000.00 judgment against defendant for unpaid salary. Defendant took writ of error. (In the same action the plaintiff suffered an involuntary nonsuit on other counts of his declaration for breach of contract. See Gilliland v. Mercantile Investment & Holding Company, decided at this term.)

The theory of plaintiff’s case submitted to the jury was: first, special assumpsit wherein he claimed defendant named him for a ten-year period at an annual salary of $15,000.00 to act in various official capacities with Hollywood, Inc., a company holding valuable properties of defendant. The plaintiff also claims in general assumpsit the rendition of service as stated above from January 22, 1931, to September 9, 1937; that same was reasonably worth $15,000.00 annually.

Defendant plead, first, general issue; second, payment; third, novation and payment.

For proof of special assumpsit the plaintiff relies on a written agreement made for his benefit between defendant Mercantile Company and Highway Construction Company, wherein it was agreed that plaintiff would serve for defendant as a vice president, secretary, member of board of directors and on the executive committee of Hollywood, Inc. To fix the term of employment plaintiff relies on a ten-year written voting trust executed by officers representing defendant.

*612Plaintiff was not a party to the latter. It could be terminated by mutual agreement of the contracting parties. It was terminated before the ten-year period.

To prove the amount of compensation plaintiff relies on an oral agreement with defendant’s president, who was deceased at the time of bringing of this action.

We have reached the conclusion that the evidence is wholly insufficient to prove an express contract of employment as alleged by plaintiff. The written agreement relied on by plaintiff was not made for the purpose of binding defendant to employ plaintiff. One of its purposes was to insure defendant a voice in the management of Hollywood, Inc. The defendant merely designated plaintiff to represent it in the stated capacities. Neither of the contracting parties intended or contemplated that they were making a contract to obligate defendant to plaintiff as claimed. In the absence of such intent the obligation does not arise, even though plaintiff might have benefited by same. See Wright v. Terry, 23 Fla. 160, 2 So. 6; East Coast Stores, et al., v. Cuthbert, et al., 101 Fla. 25, 133 So. 863.

We consider now the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the verdict on general assumpsit. There was no testimony of reasonable value of services rendered to defendant by plaintiff. On the contrary the evidence shows that plaintiff was paid for all services rendered to defendant.

We hold therefore that the motion to direct a verdict should have been granted. It is unnecessary to decide the other assignments of error. The judgment is reversed for further proceedings. not inconsistent with this opinion.

Reversed.

Brown, C. J., Whitfield and Thomas, J. J., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Kuharske v. Lake Cnty. Citrus Sales, 44 So.2d 641 (Fla. 1949)
    …principles of the law of contracts is that there must be mutuality of agreement and there can be no such mutuality when there is no common intention. Webster Lumber Co. v. Lincoln, 94 Fla. 1097, 115 So. 498; Mercantile Inv. Holding Co. v. Gilliland, 147 Fla. 610, 3 So. 2d 149. See also 17 C.J.S., Contracts, § 31, p. 359. We are constrained to hold that when the defendant failed voluntarily to fulfil his contract by picking all of the marketable fruit and elected to treat the deposit as an advance payment f…
  • …. When this Court reverses a judgment it has the power to direct the entry of such judgment as may be proper in law. Section 4640, C.G.L. 1927. Garzo v. Brophy Const. Co., 66 Fla. 607, 64 So. 234. [*177] When we reversed the judgment in this case, (147 Fla. 610, 3 So. 2nd 149) we were of the opinion that the planitiff had introduced evidence of services rendered hut had not produced evidence of the reasonable value of such service. Furthermore it appeared that the defendant’s plea of payment had been prove…

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