Boyd v. Kirch

Citations

• 234 Pa. 432
• 83 A. 366
• 1912 Pa. LEXIS 665

Syllabus

<p>Judgment — Buie to open judgment — Note—Forgery—Evidence.</p> <p>1. An application to open a judgment entered on a warrant of attorney is addressed to the equitable powers of the court and on appeal the question is whether there has been a proper exercise of judicial discretion.</p> <p>2. Where on a rule to open a judgment, the genuineness of the note on which judgment was entered is in dispute, and the issue is that of forgery, the writing is not of weight. Its execution is the subject of inquiry, and there is no presumption arising from the writing itself to overcome it. The burden of establishing its genuineness is on the plaintiff in the judgment.</p> <p>3. On a rule to open a judgment, defendant testified that he had not signed the note on which the judgment was entered, and that he was not at the time of its date indebted to the plaintiff in any amount. He was corroborated by two witnesses who were familiar with his handwriting, and knew his signature. His testimony was contradicted by the plaintiff and by experts who expressed the opinion that the note was genuine. Held, on appeal that the order making absolute the rule to open the judgment could not be reversed.</p>