Holton v. Gleason

Where a record of a judgment in a foreign jurisdiction is introduced as evidence, the court will admit evidence of the laws of snch jurisdiction, to explain such record; and its validity or invalidity will be determined accordingly. A judgment upon a nonsuit will not estop a party from maintaining a second action for the same cause, in the same or another jurisdiction.

Assumpsit, on a promissory note, dated September 21st, 1835, for $250, signed by the defendant, and payable to one John C. Gleason, or order, on demand with interest, and by said Gleason indorsed to the plaintiff. The defendant pleaded that an action had been commenced against him upon the note in favor of John C. Gleason, the payee, and entered in the county court of Caledonia county, in the State of Vermont, December term, 1849; that the action came on for trial at the June term of the court of that county, 1850; that the jury returned a verdict for the defendant, and that judgment was entered thereon, and that the judgment was still in force and unsatisfied, as the record of the court would show. The plaintiff replied ml tiel record, and issue was joined thereon. On the trial, a copy of the record, duly certified by the clerk of Caledonia, was produced in evidence,.and it appeared that in an action brought by said John C. Gleason against the present defendant to recover the amount of the notes described, a judgment on a verdict was rendered for the defendant at the June term of the county court in 1850. That the plaintiff thereupon “ prayed for and was admitted to enter a review of said suit to the then next term of the court, to be held on th ¿first Tuesday of December, 1850.” It further appeared from the record that at the December term, “ the parties appeared by their attorneys and put themselves on the court for trial,” and that the plaintiff thereupon became nonsuit, and judgment was rendered accordingly. The plaintiff introduced evidence tending to show that, by the Jaw of Vermont, when an action is reviewed, the former judgment becomes thereby entirely vacated. A verdict was taken, by consent, for the plaintiff, on which it was agreed that judgment should be entered, or the verdict set aside and judgment entered for the defendant, as the opinion of this court should be upon the whole case.