[Download] "Hoffman Management Corporation v. S.L.C" by Western District Court of Appeals of Missouri " Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Hoffman Management Corporation v. S.L.C
- Author : Western District Court of Appeals of Missouri
- Release Date : January 13, 1990
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 72 KB
Description
This is a consolidated appeal. Hoffman Management Corporation, et al. (hereinafter HMC) cross-appeals from the trial court's declaratory judgment finding that a telephone system was owned by S.L.C. of North America, Inc. (hereinafter S.L.C.) and appeals from the trial court's verdict in favor of S.L.C. for conversion of that telephone system. S.L.C. appeals from the trial court's order, remitting the amount of the award from $45,000.00 to $19,763.88. The trial court's declaratory judgment ruling is affirmed. This court also affirms the jury's verdict and remands this cause with directions to set aside the order of remittitur and enter judgment for S.L.C. for the verdict sum of $45,000.00, plus prejudgment interest. Cross-appellants, HMC, et al., present five points on appeal which, in summary, charge that the trial court erred: (1) in its findings of fact and Conclusions of law for declaratory judgment in concluding that S.L.C. was the owner of the telephone system because the telephone system was a fixture and not, as the court concluded, personalty, and, therefore, ownership passed to HMC as part of the foreclosure sale because HMC was a bona fide purchaser for value without notice of S.L.C.'s unperfected security interest; (2) in finding the telephone system to be personalty but, even if the telephone system was personalty, the trial court erred in making the Conclusion of law that S.L.C. was the owner of the telephone system because it improperly concluded that the foreclosure sale included only real property and, therefore, that HMC did not acquire any interest in personalty as part of the foreclosure sale, in that the deed of trust foreclosed upon granted a security interest in personalty which was foreclosed and to which ownership passed to HMC as part of the foreclosure sale pursuant to § 400.9-501(4), RSMo 1986; (3) in finding the telephone system to be personalty, but, even if the phone system is personalty, the trial court erred in making the Conclusion of law that S.L.C. was the owner of the telephone and that S.L.C. had not abandoned the telephone system; (4) in giving Instruction No. 7, because it instructed the jury as to an improper measure of damages in that it allowed the jury to compensate S.L.C. for loss of use in addition to depreciation in fair market value which, under the circumstances of this case, resulted in a verdict far in excess of recoverable damages and, further, in that it did not define the point in time at which to determine the value of the telephone system for purposes of determining depreciation in value; and (5) in entering judgment against ""the partners"" because it improperly ruled that they were parties to the proceedings at trial on S.L.C.'s counter-claim for conversion in that S.L.C.'s amended counterclaim did not assert claims against ""the partners"" and was not served on them.