Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-87-01881/USCOURTS-ca10-87-01881-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 220
Nature of Suit: Foreclosure
Cause of Action: 

---

,, 

FILED 

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS 

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT 

Unit.eel St.ates Court of Appeals 

Tenth Circuit 

MAR 1 41989 

ROBERT L. H(mCKER 

Clerk MCLEAN FINANCIAL CORPORATION, 

Plaintiff-Appellant, 

v. 

ROGER D. BICHON; DONNA J. BICHON, 

JOYCE POSTIER, County Treasurer of 

Garfield County; BOARD OF COUNTY 

COMMISSIONERS OF GARFIELD COUNTY; 

JUSTICE MORTGAGE COMPANY, INC., a 

Texas corporation, 

Defendants-Appellees, 

v . 

JUSTICE MORTGAGE COMPANY, INC., 

a Texas corporation, 

Third-party- defendantAppellee. 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

) 

ORDER AND JUDGMENT* 

No. 87-1881 

(D.C. No. 86-724-W) 

(W.D. Okla.) 

Before MCKAY, BARRETT, and SEYMOUR, Circuit Judges. 

After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel 

has determined unanimously that oral argument would not materially 

assist the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 

* This order and judgment has no precedential value and shall not 

be cited, or used by any court within the Tenth Circuit, except 

for purposes of establishing the doctrines of the law of the case, 

r es judicata, or collateral estoppel. 10th Cir. R. 36.3. 

Appellate Case: 87-1881 Document: 010110024597 Date Filed: 03/14/1989 Page: 1 
34(a); 10th Cir. R. 34.1.9. 

submitted without oral argument. 

The cause is therefore ordered 

McLean Financial Corporation appeals from the judgment of the 

district court which extinguished the note, mortgage, and 

graduated loan rider executed by the Bichons in favor of Justice 

Mortgage Company and subsequently assigned to McLean. McLean 

argues that even though the jury, in special interrogatories, 

found that Justice fraudulently altered the loan rider, the note 

was not altered and it therefore is valid and enforceable against 

plaintiffs. 

Although the loan rider was attached to the mortgage, the 

rider specifically referred to the note, and the three documents 

were executed at the same time. The district court concluded that 

when the note, loan rider, and mortgage were read together, they 

were ambiguous because the terms set out in the note and loan 

rider were different. The court therefore submitted to the jury 

as a fact issue whether the terms of the loan rider superseded the 

note. The jury found that the loan rider governed the note. We 

agree with the district court that this issue was properly sent to 

the jury, and that its decision required cancellation of the note, 

see Goss v. Trinity Sav. & Loan Ass'n, P.2d , No. 67,298 

(Okla. Ct. App. filed Aug. 23, 1988). See also Doyle v. Trinity 

Sav. & Loan Ass'n, F.2d , Nos. 86-2236, 86-2309 (10th Cir. 

filed March 9, 1989). 

2 

Appellate Case: 87-1881 Document: 010110024597 Date Filed: 03/14/1989 Page: 2 
j 

McLean also contends that the Bichons were not prevailing 

parties as to McLean and therefore the award of attorney's fees 

and costs against McLean was error. McLean brought this action 

seeking judgment on the note and foreclosure of the mortgage. 

Under Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 936, the prevailing party in a civil 

action to recover on a note is entitled to a reasonable attorney's 

fee. A defendant who successfully defends against an action on a 

note is entitled to an attorney's fee. See American General Life 

Ins. Co. v. Bean, 671 P.2d 83 (Okla. App. 1983). The decision in 

Goss to reverse an award of attorney's fees is not persuasive 

authority to the contrary, because in that case the borrower 

brought an action to discharge the note rather than awaiting an 

action on the note and raising alteration as a defense. The court 

in Goss held that the action to discharge the note was not an 

action ''to recover on" a note within the meaning of section 936. 

Here, the Bichons successfully defended against McLean's action on 

the note. 

The judgment of the United States District Court for the 

Western District of Oklahoma is AFFIRMED. 

The mandate shall issue forthwith. 

ENTERED FOR THE COURT 

Stephanie K. Seymour 

Circuit Judge 

3 

Appellate Case: 87-1881 Document: 010110024597 Date Filed: 03/14/1989 Page: 3