E. M. Loew's Enterprises, Inc. v. Surabian

The present defendant brought suit
against the plaintiff to recover for injuries
which she allegedly sustained in a fall in the
plaintiff's theater in Hartford. Service was made
upon the secretary of state as agent for the
plaintiff, a foreign corporation. The copy of the
writ and complaint and a separate letter from the
office of the secretary of state were received at
the plaintiff's Boston headquarters. The writ and
complaint and a covering letter were mailed by the
plaintiff to an adjustment bureau in Hartford
which represented the plaintiff's insurance
carrier. These papers were not received at the
bureau and were not sent back to the plaintiff.
The action was returnable on the first Tuesday of
August, 1953. The defendant was represented by an
attorney since deceased. He obtained a statutory
three months' continuance on October 2, 1953, and
on January 29, 1954, had a default entered for
failure of the plaintiff to appear. Surabian v.
E. M. Loew's Enterprises, Inc., Superior Court,
Hartford County, No. 96292. Though the attorney
had negotiated with the adjustment bureau on
possible settlement of the claim prior to
starting suit, he gave
[146 Conn. 610]
no notice of the continuance or the default to it
or to the plaintiff. He died in May, 1955, and two
months later present counsel filed his appearance.
He claimed a hearing in damages, after which the
court rendered judgment for $5000 on January 11,
1956. The first notice the plaintiff had of the
judgment was a letter dated September 20, 1956,
from the defendant's attorney, requesting payment.