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WELLS et al. v. COKER BANKING COMPANY

Supreme Court of Georgia1901-07-19
113 Ga. 857

Summary

Holding. The agreement to try three separate cases together at the same time does not constitute a consolidation of the cases, and therefore a single bill of exceptions cannot be used to bring three distinct judgments before the appellate court for review. The writ of error is dismissed.

The Coker Banking Company filed three separate lawsuits in justice's court against multiple defendants on promissory notes. The cases were appealed to superior court, where the parties agreed to have all three cases tried together before a judge sitting without a jury. The judge struck most defendants' pleas, rendered separate judgments in each case, and the defendants appealed by filing a single bill of exceptions attempting to review all three judgments together.

The court held that merely trying multiple cases at the same time by agreement does not consolidate them into a single case. Because the three cases remained legally distinct—with separate judgments rendered in each—the defendants could not bring them before the appellate court through a single bill of exceptions. The court lacked jurisdiction to review the cases under this procedural posture and therefore dismissed the writ of error.

Summary generated by law.co from the public-domain opinion. The opinion text itself is public domain.

Key issues

  • Whether an agreement to try multiple cases together constitutes consolidation of those cases
  • Whether a single bill of exceptions may be used to appeal three separate judgments rendered in three distinct cases
  • Appellate jurisdiction when parties attempt to bring multiple non-consolidated cases in one writ of error

Procedural posture

Defendants appealed three separate judgments from superior court by filing a single bill of exceptions, and the defendant in error moved to dismiss the writ of error for lack of jurisdiction.

Authorities cited

No cited authorities resolved to law.co cases yet.

Opinion

majority opinion

Eish, J.

The Coker Banking Company brought three separate suits in a justice’s court against Wooten as maker, and Harris, Bedford, Joiner, Wells, Dobbins, Boone, and Hewitt, as indorsers. Two of the suits were, respectively, on three, and the other on four promissory notes, each of the notes being for $24.55. The notes were executed as part of one transaction, being given by the defendants to the plaintiff for the loan of a certain sum of money made by plaintiff to the defendant Wooten. Wooten, Bedford, and Joiner made no defense to the suits. The other defendants filed a. joint plea in each case, setting up the same defense in each plea. All the suits were appealéd to the superior court, where “ By agreement [as recited in the bill of exceptions] the three cases were tried together before his honor J. H. Lumpkin, presiding as judge and jury.” Upon plaintiff’s motion the judge struck the defendants” pleas, except as to the defendant Harris, and rendered a separate-judgment in each case, relieving Harris, and in favor of the plaintiff against the defendants Wells, Dobbins, Boone, and Hewitt. The defendants against whom the judgments were rendered excepted to the rulings of the judge, in striking their pleas, in disallowing amendments offered by them, and in rendering the judgments, against them, and they assign error upon such rulings in a single-bill of exceptions. Upon the call of the case in this court, the defendant in error moved to dismiss the writ of error, because “ Three-, separate and distinct cases, in which separate and distinct judgments were rendered, are embraced in the bill of exceptions, and plaintiffs in error are attempting to review by one writ of error the three distinct decisions and three distinct judgments rendered in the three distinct cases.” This motion must be granted and the writ of error dismissed. The three cases were never really consolidated. There was simply an agreement that they be tried together, that is, at the same, time — in one trial — by the presiding judge of the superior court, without the -intervention of a jury. There was no order that the cases be consolidated, and, though tried at the same time, they were not tried as one case. The judge treated them as three separate cases, and rendered a separate judgment in each case. This exact question was ruled in Erwin v. Ennis, 104 Ga. 861, where it was held: “An agreement between counsel that ‘ three causes be submitted to the finding and decision, as. to all -facts and law, of [the presiding judge], without the intervention of a jury,’ did not amount to a consolidation of the cases,, and did not authorize the losing party, who was a party to all three of the cases, to make only one motion for a new trial, and, upon the same being overruled, to file one bill of exceptions to this court* attempting to bring all three of the cases for decision here. This. court has no jurisdiction to entertain such a bill of exceptions, and therefore in such a case the writ of error will be dismissed, notwithstanding the fact that it appears that the three cases relate to the same fund or property, each case being between different parties.” It is true that there each case was between different parties, but the question decided was, not that the cases could not have been consolidated because between different parties, but that the agreement entered into by counsel for the respective parties did not amount to a consolidation. Mr. Justice Cobb, in rendering the opinion, said: “ Whether it was in the power of the judge of the superior court to consolidate the three cases into one, so far as to authorize one motion for a new trial, and one bill of exceptions, is a question not necessary to be decided in the present case.” Neither do we now pass on the question whether or not the three cases sought to be brought here in the present writ of error could have been consolidated, so as to have been properly brought here in a single bill of exceptions; because that point is not before us for decision. All we do decide is that there was no consolidation, and consequently this court has no jurisdiction to entertain the bill of exceptions attempting to bring the three cases here for review.

Writ of error dismissed.

All the Justices concurring.