5 Wend. 55 | N.Y. Sup. Ct. | 1830
By the Court,
The rule is, that an interest in the cause to exclude a witness must be direct and certain, not contingent. In Peyton v. Hallelt, 1 Caines, 362,it appeared that the witness had received from the plaintiff, for a debt due from the plaintiff, an order on the plaintiff’s agent to be paid out of the money to be recovered in that suit, though the order was not accepted. He added, that whether the order was accepted or not, he should look to the plaintiff for payment of his debt. The court held the witness was incompetent on the ground of interest. Lewis, Ch. J. thought the witness not interested because the bill or order had not been, accepted, nor had the fund come to the hands of the agent. In this case the fund was in the hands of the sheriff and the plaintiff below had agreed to give an order for it which the witness relied on ; and the witness had no other prospect of immediate payment, as the plaintiff was destitute of property and insolvent.
That case has subsequently been referred to as containing the correct rule in such cases. Stewart v. Kip, 5 Johns. R. 256. In the language of Spencer, justice, in the latter case, the witness in Peyton v. Hallett, was called to create a fund upon which, when created, he would have a lien. Such was the case also in Powell v. Gordon, 2 Esp. 735, where the witness was a creditor of the plaintiff and had a power of attorney to receive the money when collected, out of which he meant to pay himself. The case of Innis v. Miller, 2 Dallas, 50, goes further; the court there say, that a creditor is excluded from giving testimony if he acknowledges an expectation that he shall be bettered by the fate of the cause; they say he is sensible of a positive interest that must give a bias to his mind. The rule laid down by elementary writers is, that the interest to render a witness incompetent, must be a present
If, however, he was disqualified by interest, the release did not render his testimony good in the cause without re-examination. 14 Johns. R. 378. 2 Nott & M'Cord, 308.
Judgment affirmed.