STOCK AGENT AND CLIENT

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 133, 22 February 1918, Page 8

STOCK AGENT AND CLIENT

IMPORTANT JUDGMENT

Reserved judgment was delivered in the Magistrate's Court yesterday by Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M., in tho case in which Dalgety and Co., Ltd./re--presented by Mr. A. W. Blair, proceeded against Edward de Mey, farmer, Te Horo, for whom Mr. C. H. Treadwell appeared, to recover £27 12s. 10d., being an amount of £14 7s. 10d. due to plaintiff as on August 31, 1916, and £13-6s. .commission. Defendant admitted owing the sunl of £14 7s. 10d.° The remaining amount.' £13 Cs., represented commission'at the rate of % per cent, upon the value of sheep belonging to'defendant,-'which wero sold through Messrs. Abraham and Williams, Ltd., between August 1 and September 14, 1916, and which under an. agreement of June 14,1918, defendant had, inter alia," undertaken to sell through the plaintiff coinpauy. The defendant .counter-claimed for £30 125., the value of 34 sheep, which were al-. leged not to have been returned to the defendant by the- plaintiff company. .Dealing with the counter-claim. His Worship said that the evidence showed that at defendant's request 181 s.heep were trucked from Feilding to.Dannevirke, and submitted for sale,. but,, failing to reach reserves placed on them, were raiUd back to defendant at Te Horo. The sheep were in ipoor condition on arrival at Dannevirke, and through inherent weakness and natural causes 13 sheep died during their stay there. There was no evidence to show how the loss'of the remaining, sheep occurred, and the Magistrate held that .on, the evidence submitted he did not think defendant had proved his counter-claim. : As to the claim for commission, the undertaking referred to in plaintiff's statement of claib is' in the following words;—" To' Dalgety liind Co., Ltd., Wellington,—l hereby undertake that so long a's-any moneys, shall be( or remain due, Irom me to Daigety and Co., Ltd., whether for present or future advances, not to give or grant any security over the stock belonging to me, comprising 300 hogg'ets and 10 cows, or the increase ot such stock, etc., depasturing on 125 acres freehold, Te Horo. 1 also undertake to sell such stock, or any increase . therefrom, through Dalgety and C 0. ,: Ltd.. as factor or agent, and subject to the usual commission, and to pay interest on any moneys owing at the rate of 7 per cent, per annum, etc."

Counsel for defendant submitted that the. undertaking referred to disclosed no consideration on the part of plaintiffs, and was therefore nudum pactum. Defendant admitted that prior to' signing tho agreement he agreed to the terms, and it was borne out by the correspondence between the parties. The Magistrate thought the objection was purely technical, the correspondence and other evidence clearly showing that the terms of the undertaking had been arranged and acted upon by both parties for some considerable time before its actual date, and after the beginning of June the plaintiff company observed its part of the arrangement while defendant failed to carry out his. Judgment was given for plaintiff for £27 7s. -Id., with costs. Defendant was non-suited on tho .counter-claim, and plaintiff was allowed costs on the counter-claim.