Opinion ID: 161389
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Wrongful Garnishment

Text: 18 The district court below did not address the merits of Vanover's wrongful garnishment action. Rather, because Vanover specifically alleged that the defendants acted with malice in bringing Cook's garnishment motion, the district court held that his complaint should be construed as one for malicious prosecution instead of wrongful garnishment. See Vanover, No. 98-4166-DES at 6, 8. The district court relied on Kansas cases that hold a plaintiff cannot avoid the one-year statute of limitations for malicious prosecution claims by recasting a complaint as one for wrongful garnishment or wrongful attachment. See id. at 8 (citing, e.g., Brown v. Westport Finance Co., 145 F. Supp. 265, 267 (W.D. Mo. 1956); Root Grain Co. v. Livengood, 100 P.2d 74 (Kan. 1940)). 19 Vanover contends that Brown v. Westport Finance Co., the primary case relied upon by the district court, was itself based upon an erroneous interpretation of Kansas law, and he urges this court to reject its reasoning since Brown was decided by a federal court in the Western District of Missouri which was merely trying to predict Kansas law. We need not reach this issue, because even assuming Vanover properly sought to allege a wrongful garnishment claim, his pleading is insufficient to do so. 20 The Kansas Court of Appeals has held that a party is entitled to garnish property only where the garnishee in fact owes a debt to the garnishor, and where the garnishee owns a beneficial interest in the property garnished. See Miller v. Clayco State Bank, 708 P.2d 997, 1000 (Kan. Ct. App. 1985). Where these facts do not appear, a claim for wrongful garnishment arises even where the garnishing party acted without malice and had probable cause to believe garnishment was appropriate. See id.; Lukens v. First National Bank, 101 P.2d 914, 918 (Kan. 1940); (This court has followed the more modern rule which does not recognize probable cause as a sufficient defense to a claim for actual damages for wrongful garnishment.). In addition, Kansas has recognized the applicability of a wrongful garnishment claim where property that belongs to a debtor is statutorily exempted from garnishment. See Owens v. Deutch, 137 P.2d 181, 185 (Kan. 1943); Stark v. Bare, 17 P. 826, 827 (Kan. 1888). 21 In this case, the state district court found both that Vanover owed Cook a debt, and it is undisputed that Vanover owned a beneficial interest in the funds garnished. There is no allegation that these funds were otherwise exempt from garnishment. Nevertheless, Vanover contends he has alleged a claim for wrongful garnishment because the Defendants garnished approximately 25 percent more money that was ultimately upheld by the Kansas Court of Appeals. Because neither the Supreme Court of Kansas nor any other court of that state which we could find has addressed the question of whether a claim for wrongful garnishment can arise from garnishing more money than is necessary to satisfy a debt, we are required to predict how that court would rule on the issue. See, e.g., City of Overland Park, 65 F.3d at 872. In this case, we predict that Kansas would hold that a party who garnishes funds in excess of what a court ultimately determines is due is not liable for wrongful garnishment. 22 A claim for excessive garnishment would constitute a dramatic expansion of Kansas's wrongful garnishment cause of action. Under Kansas law, a claim for wrongful garnishment arises regardless of whether the creditor acted with malice, see, e.g., Dody v. State Bank of Commerce, 108 P. 804 (Kan. 1910), and can arise even in circumstances in which the creditor had probable cause to believe that garnishment was justified, see, e.g., Lukens, 101 P.2d at 918. Were we to accept Vanover's argument in favor of liability for excessive garnishments, we would impose a strict liability burden on plaintiffs in garnishment proceedings accurately to forecast their eventual recoveries in spite of what may be strongly contested legal and factual questions at play in a case. 3 23 Neither the Kansas Supreme Court nor any other court of that state has ever suggested that it would impose liability on a claim of wrongful garnishment for garnishing more than is needed to secure a debt . Accordingly, we decline to do so as well. Hence, we affirm the district court's dismissal of Vanover's claim of wrongful garnishment.