Langley v. Devlin

Citations

• 95 Wash. 171
• 163 P. 395
• 4 A.L.R. 32
• 1917 Wash. LEXIS 775

Syllabus

<p>Limitation of Actions — Knowledge of Fraud — Time of Discovery — Evidence—Sufficiency. In an action for relief upon the ground of fraud in concealing the amount received on the sale of mining stock and secretly retaining a one-tenth interest out of the purchase price without accounting to plaintiff therefor, a finding that the action was barred, under Rem. Code; § 159, subd. 4, because not commenced within three years after discovery of the fraud, is not sustained by the evidence, where it was based upon the testimony of a discredited witness to the effect that the plaintiff knew all the time- that defendants held stock and had retained the interest at the time of the sale, which was contradicted by all the concomitant circumstances and by the plaintiffs, who testified that defendants represented that their stock was purchased by them and that plaintiffs did not know that such stock was secretly retained at the time of the sale.</p> <p>Witnesses — Credibility. Credibility is not to be accorded to a witness who was willing to make himself a party to the eloignment of a witness and who made unsupported charges against others of the same crime, and worked upon both sides of the case and betrayed the confidence placed in him.</p> <p>Dismissal and Nonsuit — Grounds—Suppression oe Testimony. An effort to suppress testimony does not warrant the dismissal of an action in disregard of the merits, since a fine for contempt is usually sufficient to compensate an offense against the maxim “Omnia praesumunter contra spoliatorem.”</p> <p>Equity — Defenses—Maxims—Coming With Clean Hands. In an action to recover an interest in corporate stock, seerétly retained by defendants out of the purchase price on the sale of plaintiff’s stock, it is no defense that the plaintiffs and defendants did not deal fairly with third parties who were interested in the sale and that plaintiffs did not make all persons interested in the subject-matter parties to the suit; since the principle that he