Court Opinion

ID: 9675409
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 04:52:44.719515+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:16:34.348436
License: Public Domain

On Appellant’s Motion for Rehearing.
W. O. MURRAY, Chief Justicé.
Appellees in replying to appellant’s motion for a rehearing insist that, in view of the uncertainty of Sheriff Fisher’s testimony, the trier of facts could construe it as going no further than showing that there was printed on the cab door of the truck-tractor the words “Johnston and Sons.” If this be true then Strickland Transport Co. v. Atkins, Tex.Civ.App., 223 S.W.2d 675, 678, is very much in point. There the court said:
“While it is a rule of law in this state that where the name of a concern appears on a truck, or the insignia of a concern appears on a truck, such raises a presumption of ownership of the truck in such concern, we know of no rule that a single word, — as here ‘Strickland’ — raises a presumption that any particular concern is the owner merely because the word appears in its name. The word ‘Strickland’ could apply to innumerable concerns bearing the name ‘Strickland’ as well as to the defendant Strickland Transportation Company, Inc. Courts may not.presume ownership of a truck by mere similarity of names, or base a presumption of ownership on a single word that may constitute a component part of the name of some designated concern.”
The argument is made that even though the evidence goes no further than to show that the name on the cab door was “Johnston and Sons,” it is to be taken as conclusive of ownership, agency and course of employment unless rebutted, because it is a matter which could be so easily denied by the appellees if not true. The record in this case does not show that this testimony could have been easily denied by appellees. The record does not show that appellees were present at the trial nor that they had any occasion to be there. Neither does the evidence show that they had any intimation that Sheriff Fisher would give this testimony.
The very purpose of Rule 86, T. R. C. P., is to make the plea of privilege of a defendant prima facie proof of his right to be sued in the county of his residence and to save him the expense of a trip to a distant county, unless he has reason to believe there will be legal evidence which will call for the overruling of his plea of privilege.
If the rule were otherwise then every defendant would be compelled to be present at the hearing of his plea of privilege for' fear some one might testify that his name — “Smith”, or “Brown”, or “Jones”, or “Johnston” — was printed on the door of the automobile which was involved in the collision, and such testimony be taken as conclusive of ownership, agency and course of employment, because he was not present to deny it.
Appellant’s motion for a rehearing herein has been carefully considered by us and is overruled by the majority of the Court.