141 Mo. App. 391 | Mo. Ct. App. | 1910
The question to he determined here is the validity of the judgment entered at the January term, 1909. We first observe that this case was dismissed by plaintiff at the April term, 1907, and no further entry made at that term. It follows then that after the adjournment of that term, the case was out of court and the court lost all jurisdiction thereof and was powerless to reinstate it, or make any orders in that
After this dismissal and the adjournment of the term this case was out of court as completely as if it had been tried on its merits, and a final judgment rendered. If it ever got back into court, how did it get back, and for what purpose? It could only be reinstated for trial upon its merits by consent of both parties, and this consent must be shown to be for the purpose of a trial on the merits, and after a reinstatement in this way, the case would, in legal contemplation, be a new suit instituted at the time of the entry of appearance of the parties and not a continuation of the original case.
In this case we find a stranger to this action, Paul Jones & Company, who, though they may have been interested in some way, yet are not parties to the record, coming into court, and in another case, to-wit: that of Paul Jones & Company v. G-ray & Company, filing a motion in that case to reinstate the case of the Cairo Brewing Company v. James B. Hogg. The court 'sustained that motion in that case and made the order as requested, reinstating the case of Cairo Brewing Company v. Hogg. It is clear that this order was a nullity and did not have the effect to reinstate the brewing company case, nor did it invest the court with jurisdiction to take any steps therein. At the October term, 1907, appears the first order of court made in this case after its dismissal in April, 1907, which is as follows:
“Cairo Brewing Company v. James R. Hogg.
“Now at this time, a motion, heretofore filed to have cause redocketed, is, by the court, sustained, the cause is ordered docketed and continued until the next regular term of this court.”
The motion referred to in this order is evidently the motion filed by Paul Jones & Company in the other
It is contended by defendant in error that the record made at the October term, 1908, which recites that the case was continued “by agreement of the parties hereto,” means that all parties consented to the continuance, and that that gave the court jurisdiction in the entire case. With this we do not agree. At the time this order was made, the only parties in court were Paul Jones & Company and the brewing company, and the recital in the order “by agreement of parties hereto” must, therefore, be held to refer only to the parties then
A motion to tax costs may be filed in a case after the term at which the case is disposed of, but it cannot be said that the filing of such a motion, and an appearance thereto by the other party reinstates the case for trial on the merits, much less would this be true where the motion to tax costs is filed by one not a party to the record in the original suit. It follows that this judgment was rendered without authority, and should be reversed. It is so ordered.