Court Opinion

ID: 9770416
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 16:04:25.163202+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:31:17.182291
License: Public Domain

On Motions for Rehearing
Colonial Finance Corporation strongly urges that this Court’s opinion is grounded upon the defense of usury which was not pleaded by Harrells, and upon points not raised in their brief. This argument overlooks the pleadings upon which the case arose. Colonial was the plaintiff. Our examination of Harrells’ answer shows that they pleaded usury, and the prayer was for two things. Harrells cross-acted for double recovery, which we have held they were not entitled to, not having paid the principal, much less any illegal interest. Harrells also pleaded usury by sworn pleading and prayed that Colonial take nothing. Our decision is that the plaintiff failed to sustain its burden of proof with respect to interest, since it was usurious as pleaded.
Colonial also reasons that our opinion is pitched upon fundamental error. To the contrary, Colonial’s pleadings expressly and definitely assert that it is “organized in accordance with Articles 1524a-l * * *, and operates strictly in accordance with the statutes under which this plaintiff was organized as a corporation, and under which it is doing business, it required the defendants (Harrells) to pay the interest at the time that said contract was entered into and said interest was credited on said contract * * Colonial then specially pleaded that Article I524a-1 is constitutional. In other words, plaintiff tried its whole case upon pleadings of a loan plan which depended upon the constitutionality of the Act which defendants challenged. The facts about the amount loaned were found by the jury, which our opinion accepted as the facts. The amount charged was also found by the jury or was undisputed. Colonial’s motion for rehearing proceeds as though this Court had set aside certain jury findings because there was no evidence. We have set aside none of the jury findings.
Harrells’ seventh point in their brief on appeal is that Article 1524a-l, upon which Colonial relies, is unconstitutional, which is the very thing this Court held. Therefore, contrary to Colonial’s motion, the defendants pleaded usury, and by point on appeal urged the unconstitutionality of the very statute upon which Colonial grounded its case. Colonial’s motion is overruled.
Harrells have also filed a motion for rehearing. They point out that our original opinion incorrectly stated they actually paid an $8 fee for inspecting their furniture. One part of the record shows that Harrells paid the fee for examination of title, appraisal of the property, drawing the loan instruments, taking acknowledgments and affidavits, preparation of statements, and investigation of financial responsibility.
Harrells also protest this Court’s failure to search the record to determine that the evidence supported their contention that Colonial failed to prove strict compliance with the statutory rules which permitted them to charge credit insurance. The reason the Court did not discuss that point is that there is no such point. There is a point raising the general constitutionality of Sec. 6, Art. 3.53, Insurance Code, which we overruled on the basis of prior decisions. There is no point which touches the unconstitutional application of the facts to the *549statute. There is a point also which asks us to render the case because, as Harrells argue, certain findings are against the overwhelming weight of the evidence. The findings are not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence. We, of course, do not render under such circumstances. Our search of the brief fails to show that Harrells, under any point, discussed the argument now made in the motion for rehearing for the first time, that Colonial did not strictly follow the statutory rules for charging for life insurance.
The motions of both parties are overruled.