Greatamerica Financial Services Corporation F/K/A Greatamerica Leasing Corporation, plaintiff-appellee/cross-appellant v. Prestwood Funeral Home, Inc. and Roy Vance Prestwood Jr., defendants-appellants/cross-appellees.
16-0940
| Iowa Ct. App. | May 3, 2017Background
- Prestwood Funeral Home and its guarantor Roy Prestwood signed a lease to finance a copy machine originally with Modular Document Solutions; the lease was assigned to GreatAmerica.
- Machine delivered Feb 6, 2009; Prestwood complained it did not work, Modular serviced it, and Prestwood sought a copy-credit for service copies.
- GreatAmerica contacted Prestwood Feb 9–10; district court found Prestwood accepted the equipment on Feb 10 and continued usage and payments thereafter until stopping after 15 months.
- GreatAmerica repossessed the machine and sued after Prestwood ceased payments; a default judgment was initially entered then set aside and the case proceeded to a one-day bench trial.
- District court awarded GreatAmerica $12,766.28 for unpaid lease, awarded $25,000 in attorney fees/expenses, and contract interest at 18%.
- Both parties appealed: Prestwood challenged liability and the fee award; GreatAmerica cross-appealed seeking higher fees and appellate fees.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (GreatAmerica) | Defendant's Argument (Prestwood) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Prestwood accepted the leased equipment, triggering payment obligations | Acceptance occurred Feb 10 based on phone confirmation and subsequent payments/usage | Equipment was rejected due to malfunction and therefore no acceptance | Court found substantial evidence Prestwood accepted on Feb 10; liability upheld |
| Whether district court abused discretion in awarding $25,000 in attorney fees | Requested $72,258.10; claimed obstruction justified higher fees and recovery of appellate fees | $25,000 is excessive relative to $12,766.28 recovery and limited trial effort | District court applied proper factors and did not abuse discretion; $25,000 affirmed; remanded to determine reasonable appellate fees (partial success for GreatAmerica) |
Key Cases Cited
- Chrysler Fin. Co. v. Bergstrom, 703 N.W.2d 415 (Iowa 2005) (standard of review for bench-trial findings and substantial-evidence test)
- Etchen v. Holiday Rambler Corp., 574 N.W.2d 355 (Iowa Ct. App. 1997) (appellate court must not reweigh credibility determinations)
- NevadaCare, Inc. v. Dep’t of Human Servs., 783 N.W.2d 459 (Iowa 2010) (abuse-of-discretion review for attorney-fee awards)
- GreatAmerica Leasing Corp. v. Cool Comfort Air Conditioning and Refrigeration, Inc., 691 N.W.2d 730 (Iowa 2005) (factors for assessing reasonable attorney’s fees)
- Bankers Trust Co. v. Woltz, 326 N.W.2d 274 (Iowa 1982) (contractual attorney-fee clauses can include appellate fees)
- Homan v. Branstad, 887 N.W.2d 153 (Iowa 2016) (limits on posttrial motions that simply rehash issues)