W. D. Miller Lumber Corp. v. Miller

SLOAN, Justice. Plaintiff corporation brought this action to recover money alleged to be due plaintiff from defendants decedent, W. D. Miller. Except for qualifying shares, the deceased, Miller, had been the sole stockholder of plaintiff. Defense to the action was that plaintiff was the mere alter ego of Miller so that plaintiff was not a separate legal entity and the action could not be maintained. The case was tried without a jury. The court found for plaintiff, defendant appeals from the judgment entered. It is necessary to decide if a corporations separate legal identity is lost for the sole reason that all of the stock is owned by one person. A background of facts will be helpful.