McDougall v. Walling

Citations

• 19 Wash. 80
• 52 P. 530
• 1898 Wash. LEXIS 321

Syllabus

<p>RIGHT TO OPEN AND CLOSE — AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE — APPEAL — WEIGHT OF EVIDENCE.</p> <p>In an action to recover on a promissory note the amount due with interest and a stated attorney fee fixed hy the contract of the parties, which was entered into prior to the act of 1895 authorizing the court to allow such fee as may be reasonable, a defendant who admits the allegations of the complaint and sets up an affirmative defense that he signed as surety and has been released by an extension granted the principal maker, is entitled to the opening and closing of the case, as there is no burden upon plaintiff to prove even a reasonable attorney’s fee.</p> <p>The verdict of the jury will not be disturbed on appeal, where the evidence is substantially conflicting, and the lower court has declined to grant a new trial on the ground that the evidence does not-justify the verdict.</p>