Meisel v. Central Trust Company of New York

Appeal from a judgment, entered November 5, 1917, upon an order of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the first judicial department, which reversed an order of Special Term overruling a demurrer to the complaint, sustained such demurrer and directed a dismissal of the complaint, which alleged a trust agreement under which certain shares constituting capital stock of an Illinois company, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway Company, were assigned by another holding company to the defendant trustee in trust for the benefit of the holders of bonds issued under the agreement and as security for the payment thereof; the indorsement in blank of the certificates for this stock, and their delivery to the defendant which by agreement was expressly made the legal owner; the issue of bonds thereunder to the amount of $71,353,000; the ownership of the plaintiff of "four of these bonds, in par value $4,000; a default upon the bonds; a refusal by the trustee to advertise the stock for sale; a suit of foreclosure by the trustee which resulted in an expense of more than $317,000; the sale of the mortgaged property by the court for $7,135,300; the entry of a deficiency judgment against the mortgagor for $68,239,-252.88; the receipt by the defendant of the cash paid upon the sale to the amount of $1,335,938.68; a demand upon the • defendant by the plaintiff for an accounting of its receipts for disbursements and proceedings under the trust agreement; a similar demand by other holders of these bonds; the failure and refusal of the defendant to account to any of the bondholders.