Title: Babcock v. Dose
Citation: 179 Kan. 298, 293 P.2d 1007
Docket Number: 40,116
State: Kansas
Issuer: Kansas Supreme Court
Date: February 29, 1956

179 Kan. 298 (1956)
293 P.2d 1007
EARL R. BABCOCK, Appellant,
v.
CARL DOSE doing business as CARL DOSE MOTOR SALES, Appellee.
No. 40,116

Supreme Court of Kansas.
Opinion filed February 29, 1956.
Sylvan Bruner and Morris Matuska, both of Pittsburg, argued the cause and were on the briefs for the appellant.
P.E. Nulton, of Pittsburg, argued the cause and R.L. Letton, of Pittsburg, was with him on the briefs for the appellee.
*299 The opinion of the court was delivered by
PARKER, J.:
This was an action to collect an unpaid award in a workmen's compensation case under the provisions of G.S. 1949, 44-512a. The plaintiff appeals from an order sustaining a demurrer to his petition.
Plaintiff commenced the action in district court on July 7, 1955, by the filing of a petition which outlines the facts and discloses the theory on which he bases his right to relief. Omitting formal averments of no consequence and the prayer such pleading reads:
Without other attack defendant demurred to the foregoing petition on grounds (1) that the court had no jurisdiction of the subject matter; (2) that there was another action pending between the same parties for the same cause; and (3) that the petition failed to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant.
Upon presentation and argument the foregoing demurrer was sustained in its entirety. Plaintiff then perfected this appeal, wherein the only question involved is whether the court erred in sustaining such demurrer.
So far as here pertinent the statute (Laws 1943, Chap. 189; G.S. 1949, 44-512a), entitled an act relating to workmen's compensation, which we pause here to note has been held by this court (See Ellis v. Kroger Grocery Co., 159 Kan. 213, 220, 152 P.2d 860) to be remedial and intended to supplement existing remedies as indicated therein, on which appellant bases his right to relief reads:
At the outset it should be stated that in order to render the involved petition demurrable on any of the statutory grounds asserted the defect relied on must appear on the face of the petition. This we may add is true because of our code of civil procedure.
Applicable portions of G.S. 1949, 60-705, provide:
And the pertinent part of G.S. 1949, 60-707, reads:
Our decisions are to the effect that the statute means exactly what it says. See, e.g., Lorey v. Cox, 175 Kan. 66, 259 P.2d 194, which holds:
See, also, Runnels v. Montgomery Ward &amp; Co., 165 Kan. 571, 195 P.2d 571, where it is held:
With direct reference to the instant pleading, since the issue about to be considered reaches us on a demurrer, it should be emphasized and must be kept in mind that in determining its sufficiency its allegations must be liberally construed and given the benefit of all reasonable inferences, also that we are required to assume the facts are as pleaded and not as they might appear at a trial after the joinder of issues by proper pleadings. See West's Kansas Digest, Pleading, § 34 (1), (3), and Hatcher's Kansas Digest (Rev. Ed.), Pleading, §§ 35, 37.
And last but not least it must be remembered that in testing the sufficiency of the petition as against the demurrer the established rule of this court is that it cannot reach out and make additional facts a part of such pleading for purposes of determining the propriety of the ruling on the demurrer.
See, Kendall v. Elliott, 177 Kan. 630, 281 P.2d 1088, which holds:
*302 For some of our more recent decisions of like import wherein the same rule is stated, discussed and applied see Force v. Bates, 177 Kan. 438, 280 P.2d 584; Tyler v. Common School District No. 76, 177 Kan. 387, 392, 279 P.2d 302; Wahl v. Walsh, 177 Kan. 176, 277 P.2d 623; Whitaker v. Douglas, 177 Kan. 154, 277 P.2d 641; Southard v. Mutual Benefit Health &amp; Accident Ass'n, 177 Kan. 26, 28, 276 P.2d 299; Lee v. Beuttel, 170 Kan. 54, 223 P.2d 692; American Glycerin Co. v. Freeburne, 157 Kan. 22, 25, 138 P.2d 468.
When the heretofore quoted petition is examined in the light of the foregoing section of our statute and the rules applicable to the determination of its sufficiency, as against the attack made against it, we do not think the trial court would have been warranted in concluding it had no jurisdiction of the subject matter. Instead our view is that under the allegations of such pleading the statute (G.S. 1949, 44-512a), in clear and unequivocal language, gives the appellant the right to maintain and such court the power to hear and determine the action. Neither do we believe the trial court would have been justified in sustaining the demurrer on the ground the petition discloses on its face there was another action pending between the same parties for the same cause. Indeed, assuming as we must that the facts are as pleaded, the allegations of such pleading are directly to the contrary. Nor do we agree that, when limited to the particular facts as pleaded, the petition fails to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action under the provisions of G.S. 1949, 44-512a, in favor of the appellant and against the appellee. In fact when limited strictly to the facts pleaded, and absent outside matters and things on which the appellee relies by way of defense to the action, we are convinced the petition contains all allegations necessary and required to state a cause of action for the collection of an unpaid workmen's compensation award under the provisions of the section of the statute last above mentioned.
Having concluded, as the trial court's action in sustaining the demurrer in its entirety requires, that none of the attacks against the petition have merit it follows such action cannot be upheld.
Finally it should be stated that in reaching the conclusion just announced we have disregarded, not overlooked, contentions advanced by appellant respecting the existence of other facts and circumstances which, notwithstanding they do not appear on the face of the petition, he seeks to have considered and reviewed in connection with the ruling on the demurrer. We are not disposed to here detail or labor these matters. It suffices to say, that under *303 the sections of the statute as well as the decisions heretofore mentioned, we are not presently concerned with such matters and they cannot be either considered or disposed of until such time as the parties see fit to join issues respecting them under pleadings warranting their appellate review and disposition.
The order of the trial court sustaining the demurrer to the petition is reversed with directions to set it aside.
HARVEY, C.J., not participating.