Case Name: William Shæffer v. Isaiah W. Hodges
Court: Illinois Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Decision Date: 1870-06
Citations: 54 Ill. 337
Docket Number: 
Parties: William Shæffer v. Isaiah W. Hodges.
Judges: 
Reporter: Illinois Reports
Volume: 54
Pages: 337–338

Head Matter:
William Shæffer v. Isaiah W. Hodges.
Measure of damages—in suit by assignee against Ms assignor. In a suit by an assignee against the assignor of a promissory note, the measure of damages is the amount paid for the note, with interest, with the limitation that the recovery must not exceed the amount due upon the face of the note.
Appeal from the Circuit Court of Wayne county; the Hon. James M. Pollock, Judge, presiding.
The opinion states the case.
Mr. C. A. Beecher and Mr. R. P. Hanna, for the appellant.
Mr. J. K. Albright, for the appellee.
This and the three cases following were submitted at the June term, 1869, but unavoidably omitted from the report of the cases of that term.

Opinion:
Mr. Justice Lawrence
delivered the opinion of the Court:
This was an action by the endorsee of a promissory note against his endorser, in which the jury found a verdict for a larger sum than was due on the face of the note, and the court, overruling the motion for a new trial, rendered judgment upon the verdict. This was error. In actions of this character, the measure of damages is the amount paid by the assignee to his assignor, with interest, subject, however, to this limitation: that the recovery must not exceed the amount due upon the face of the note. The contract of the assignor is, that the note will be' paid if due diligence is used, and the assignee can not claim to be placed in a better position by the assignor than he would have occupied if the note had been paid. He has, by the assignment, purchased a debt, and must be satisfied with its payment.
The judgment of the court below is reversed and the cause remanded.
Judgment reversed.