Title: Glenn v. Lukenbill
Citation: 192 Kan. 514, 389 P.2d 792
Docket Number: 43,408
State: Kansas
Issuer: Kansas Supreme Court
Date: March 7, 1964

192 Kan. 514 (1964)
389 P.2d 792
G.N. GLENN d/b/a THE GLENN AGENCY, Appellant,
v.
WILLIAM LUKENBILL, Appellee.
No. 43,408

Supreme Court of Kansas.
Opinion filed March 7, 1964.
*515 Jacob A. Dickinson, of Topeka, argued the cause, and Sam A. Crow; Ralph E. Skoog; Bill G. Honeyman, and Hart Workman, all of Topeka, were with him on the briefs for the appellant.
Hal C. Davis, of Topeka, argued the cause and was on the briefs for the appellee.
The opinion of the court was delivered by
PARKER, C.J.:
This is an appeal from a judgment sustaining a demurrer to the plaintiff's amended petition.
The facts, which must be gleaned from the pleadings, can be briefly stated.
Plaintiff is a licensed real estate broker doing business under the name of The Glenn Agency. Defendant gave plaintiff a check in the amount of One Thousand Dollars as down payment on a real estate purchase. Plaintiff endorsed the check and presented it for payment. The bank on which it was drawn refused payment because of insufficient funds. Defendant defaulted on the real estate purchase agreement and plaintiff brought this action to recover on the check.
The petition contained the necessary formal allegations, attached a copy of the check, which was made a part thereof, and prayed for judgment. The check reads:
*516 Instead of answering defendant filed a motion to make the petition more definite and certain in the following respects:
Following a hearing the district court sustained defendant's motion in its entirety. Thereupon plaintiff filed a rather extensive amended petition in compliance with the order. Defendant then filed a demurrer to the amended petition alleging:
The district court sustained the foregoing demurrer on all three grounds therein set forth. Plaintiff then perfected the instant appeal and brings the case to this court under two specification of error.
Appellant's first claim of error is that:
It appears that appellee by his motion to make definite and certain was seeking to require appellant to plead appellee's defense, hence the motion should not have been sustained. However, due to the conclusion which we presently reach, the appellant's rights have not been undully prejudiced and it is neither necessary nor required that we labor the point.
Appellant's second and final claim of error is that:
Resort to the Negotiable Instruments Law, as well as our decisions, compels a conclusion that appellant's final claim of error has merit and must be sustained.
*517 A check is a bill of exchange and the provisions of the above mentioned law applicable to a bill of exchange, payable on demand, apply to checks (G.S. 1949, 52-1702).
For applicable decisions see Kansas Bankers Surety Co. v. Ford County State Bank, 184 Kan. 529, 338 P.2d 309; Chamberlain Co. v. Bank, 98 Kan. 611, 160 Pac. 1138.
G.S. 1949, 52-301, in part, reads: "Every negotiable instrument is deemed prima facie to have been issued for a valuable consideration, ..."
See Home State Bank v. DeWitt, 121 Kan. 29, 245 Pac. 1036, where it is said:
A party suing on a check need not allege the consideration for the instrument. If lack of consideration is available as a defense it must be established by defendant (G.S. 1949, 52-305).
See Balph v. Broadhurst, 121 Kan. 82, 245 Pac. 745, which holds:
And see Campbell v. Wilcoxen, 134 Kan. 500, 7 P.2d 46, where it is held:
The holder of a negotiable instrument may sue thereon in his own name (G.S. 1949, 52-501) and the maker admits existence of the payee and his capacity to endorse the instrument (G.S. 1949, 52-602).
The payee or endorsee in possession of a negotiable instrument holds the legal title thereto, and it is the legal title to the paper, not the beneficial interest therein, that controls as to proper parties plaintiff in a suit for the collection thereof. See e.g., Howell v. Flora, 155 Kan. 640, 127 P.2d 721.
For other decisions dealing with the subject see Howell, Trustee *518 v. Wilson, 192 Kan. 223, 387, P.2d 193; Greene v. McAuley, 70 Kan. 601, 79 Pac. 133; and Manley v. Park, 68 Kan. 400, 75 Pac. 557.
The appellee relies on Sievert v. Wood, 133 Kan. 540, 300 Pac. 1090, in support of its contention that the appellant was an agent for the seller of the real estate in question and could not sue on the check. In the Sievert case, the agent was attempting to sue on a contract for the sale of a threshing machine. The contract was not a negotiable instrument and the case has no application to this controversy.
In view of what has been heretofore stated and held we have no difficulty in concluding the trial court erred in sustaining the demurrer to appellant's amended petition. Therefore its judgment must be reversed with instructions to overrule such demurrer  and it is so ordered.
FONTRON, J., not participating.