First National Bank v. Colonial Hotel Co.

Citations

• 226 Pa. 292
• 75 A. 412
• 1910 Pa. LEXIS 757

Syllabus

<p>Corporations — Treasurer—Power to sign commercial paper — By-laws —Evidence.</p> <p>1. If the directors of a corporation acquiesce in the acts of its treasurer in executing or indorsing commercial paper while holding himself out to the public as having authority so to do, they thereby constitute him the general agent of the corporation to make such indorsement; and when the treasurer is thus made its general agent for such purpose, the corporation will be bound, though the indorsee had no knowledge of any previous indorsement.</p> <p>2. In an action against a corporation on a promissory note signed by the treasurer of the company, the burden is upon the plaintiff to show the authority of the treasurer to sign the note on behalf of the company. If the by-laws neither authorize nor forbid the treasurer to sign commercial paper, the plaintiff may offer testimony to show his authority, to the effect that the treasurer was a director of the company, owned three-fourths of its stock, was manager of a hotel operated by the company, kept the account of the corporation in bank in his name as treasurer, signed checks in his name as treasurer, had previously signed notes for the company, including one to the plaintiff, all of which had been honored and paid, where there was nothing to show that the company did not receive the proceeds of the note, except the failure of the books of the company to show that it did.</p>