Union Iron & Foundry Co. v. Sonnefield

Citations

• 113 La. 436
• 37 So. 20
• 1904 La. LEXIS 662

Syllabus

<p>REMOVAL OE CAUSES — SEPARABLE CONTROVERSY —CITATION — SERVICE — APPEARANCE — COMMISSION TO TAKE TESTIMONY — CROSS-INTERROGATORIES.</p> <p>1. Furnishers of materials to contractors, to-be used by them in the construction of a building, not having been paid, brought suit against them, claiming also a privilege upon the building. They made parties defendant the contractors, the owners of the building, and a surety company, which had executed, with the aontractors, in favor of the owners of the building, a bond for the faithful performance of the building contract. The owners of the building were made parties not only by reason of interest in the question of privilege on their property, but because it was charged by plaintiff that they had become personally liable to them as unpaid materialmen by not having required from the contractors a bond to secure the payment of workmen and materialmen. The surety company was made a party for the reason that, the contractors having defaulted upon their contract, they had assigned the same, with all its rights, and all materials belonging to-them, to their surety, which had assumed all their obligations in reference to the contract. The plaintiff was a Missouri corporation. The contractors were citizens of Texas. The surety company was a citizen of Maryland. The owner of the building was a Louisiana corporation. The contractors and the surety company applied to have the suit removed to the federal court. The application was denied by the district court. Its ruling was correct.</p> <p>2. The Fidelity & Deposit Company excepted' that the citation claimed to have been made upon it was null and void, as the person upon whom service had been made was not authorized to receive process, and, as a consequence of want of citation, it prayed that a default which had been taken should be set aside. The court, under the facts, set aside the judgment by default, with reservation to make new citation. New service was made. The judgment by def