Weiner

The cross-complainant, Marjorie Davies, after a journey through a procedural maze, temporarily finds herself with a judgment for $3,500 principal and $1,408.78 interest, based on the quantum meruit count of her cross-complaint against the two cross-defendants. Each cross-defendant has appealed, and we find it necessary to reverse the judgment because of prejudicially erroneous proceedings.

In order to obey the spirit as well as the letter of the mandate of the state Constitution, that ‘ ‘ In the determination of causes” our decisions must “be given in writing, and the ground of the decision stated” (art. VI, §24 † ) we find it necessary to give a rather wearisome account of the pleadings and related matters, which were the outgrowth of an attempt of the defendant-cross-complainant to aid the plaintiffs-erossdefendants in getting out a publication of service to the medical profession.

The first pleading was filed January 3, 1958, by plaintiffs Harry Soforenko 1 and Virginia Richmond, a complaint in claim and delivery to obtain possession of five thousand dollars worth of “data, records, research material prepared and compiled” in connection with the proposed publication. The…