TaiLexi AI U.S. Case Law

Dokken v. W. L. Huffman Automobile Co.

DOKKEN v. W. L. HUFFMAN AUTOMOBILE COMPANY

Dokken v. W. L. Huffman Auto. Co., 166 N.W. 1086 (S.D. 1918)
Download
Format
Include

Star paging (*137) is kept for pin cites.

Court
South Dakota Supreme Court · State Highest Courts
Decided
March 26, 1918
Docket
No. File No. 4258
Judges
Gates
Citations
166 N.W. 108640 S.D. 2861918 S.D. LEXIS 48
Disposition
Affirmed.
Headnotes
1. Trials — Appeal—Credibility of Witnesses, Verdict- as Controlling, Where issues of fact involved credibility of witnesses, verdict of jury settled them in plaintiff’s favor. ' 2. Master and Servant — Term of Employment, Monthly Wages as Determining — Statute—Notice of Change re Employment, Effect. The adopted estimation of wages being hy the month, it is presumed, in absence of an agreement to the contrary, that the employment was hy the month; construing Civ. Code, Sec. 1478; and defendant employer could not, hy giving notice on the fifth day of a month, make a change in amount or basis of employee’s compensation for that month, without his consent.
Summary
Appeal from Municipal! Court of the Ciify of Sioux Falls. ’Hon. Alpha F. Orr, Judge. Action by I. H. Doltken, against the W. L. Huffman Automobile Company, to recover plaintiff’s salary and commissions for his services as employee of defenldianit. From a judgment for plaintiff, and- from an order denying a new trial, defendant appeals. (2) To point two of itihie opinion, Appellant cited1: Civ. Code, Secs. 1477, 1478, 1479; Crone Miller v. Duluth Superior Milling Company, (Wis.), 114 N. W. 432, 433; Dodson Braun Mfg. Company v. Di-cks, (Tex.) 76 S. W. 451.

Syllabus and headnotes are prepared by the reporter or publisher, not the court, and are not part of the opinion.

Opinion of the Court — Gates

Text extracted by OCR from a scanned original; check the original for exact wording.

GATES, J.

Plaintiff was employed by defendant on July 1, 1916, as manager of its Sioux Falls branch office. It is conceded by defendant thialt his salary .was to ¡be $100 per month. It is claimed by the plaintiff, but denied by defendant, that in addition to the salary he was to receive 'a commission of $5 per oar upon all cars delivered from the brandh office. Defendant also claimed, but plaintiff denied, that the employment was -with the understanding that either party might discontinue the agreement at any time on notice to the other party. Plaintiff was notified, on Ootoiber 5, 1916, that thereafter he would receive compensation solely upon a commission 'basis. From a judgment for plaintiff for the amount of lids October salary and total commissions, less certain agreed defections, and from an order denying a new trial, defendant appeals.

The 'above-mentioned issues of fact involved the credibility o.f the witnesses. The verdict of the jury settled them in plain *288 tiff’s favor. Spaulding v. Pitts, 26 S. D. 78, 127 N. W. 610 .

The aidloiptedi estinnaitfcfa iof wages hieing ,by tíre month, it is presumed, in the absence of an agreement 'to' the contrary, that tli.e 'employment was by -the .month. C. C. § 1477. Therefore defendant coukl mot, by notice gvilven on the 5 th day of October make a change in the amount or basis of plaintiff’s compensation for that month without plaintiff’s doosent. Such notice would only be effective beginninig with the first of the following month. Dodson-Braun Mfg. Co. v. Dix (Tex. Civ. App.) 76 S. W. 451 . The evidence fails to show such consent bjr plaiintiff.

The judgment and order appealed from are affirmed.

How later courts describe this case

No later court has written an explanatory parenthetical about this case yet.

1978: 119782026peak 1978 · 1

Relies on it most ⓘ

  1. Kent v. Allied Oil & Supply, Inc.264 N.W.2d 512 (S.D. 1978)

Most recent

  1. Kent v. Allied Oil & Supply, Inc.264 N.W.2d 512 (S.D. 1978)

Citing references are not a citator: they show that a later opinion cites this case, not whether it followed, distinguished, or overruled it. Check negative history before relying on this case.

Authorities cited 1

DepthCaseCited by
Spaulding v. Pitts, 127 N.W. 610 (S.D. 1910) 2

Keyboard shortcuts

/Focus the search box
j kNext / previous result
EnterOpen the selected result
xAdd / remove the selected result from the download list
n pNext / previous search term in a case
cCopy the citation of the current case
+ −Larger / smaller reading text
?Show this list