Neal v. Owings
Neal v. Owings
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered by
This was an equitable proceeding to compel the delivery of a deed and the completion of a transfer of a tract of land, and from a judgment in favor of Jeannette Neal, the defendants, M. D. Owings and Lillie R. Owings, appeal.
The first contention of the defendant is that the court erred in appointing a receiver. The case was peculiarly one for the appointment of a receiver. (O’Laughlin v. Prockish, 106 Kan. 616, 189 Pac. 383.) There were growing crops on the land in which plaintiff was interested in case she prevailed in the litigation. It was also important that the cultivable land should be put in crops during the period of litigation and to prevent deterioration and waste. This was the extent of the power given to the receiver. According to plaintiff’s allegation, the contract had been made, the deed executed and both placed in the bank for delivery upon compliance with conditions which it is averred were performed by plaintiff. These things, if shown, made the plaintiff the equitable owner of the land and entitled her to the delivery of the deed. Under these circumstances the covenants of the deed would relate back to the time of the contract and the plaintiff would be entitled to the rents accruing after that date. (Scott v. Stone, 72 Kan. 545, 84 Pac. 117.) Under the pleadings and the showing made on the application as to the crops and the condition of the land, it was for the interest of both parties that a receiver be appointed to care for
Elaborate findings of fact were made by the court from which those already recited have been taken. As to the vital facts there is practically no dispute, and indeed there is little ground for controversy as to the rights of the parties. A contract of sale was finally made which embodied all the' conditions named by the defendants. The deed was executed and placed in the hands of the mutually chosen depositary. The defendant directed the bank to deliver the deed upon compliance with the terms of the contract. Substantial compliance with the agreed conditions was made by the plaintiff, and when this was done, the plaintiff became the equitable owner of the land. The manual delivery of the deed was not essential to a transfer of the equitable title as the delivery to the bank was in legal effect a delivery of it to the grantee. (Davis v. Clark, 58 Kan. 100, 48 Pac. 563; Gault v. Hurd, 103 Kan. 51, 172 Pac. 1011. See, also, Baker v. Snavely, 84 Kan. 179, 114 Pac. 370; Akins v. Holmes, 89 Kan. 812, 133 Pac. 849.) It is suggested by defendants that under the issues as formed only the delivery of the deed was involved in the case and that the court was not warranted in adjudicating other issues. If the only question raised by defendants had been the failure of the depositary bank to deliver the deed the action might have been brought against the bank alone, but the grantors were asserting misrepresentation and fraud and attacking the validity of the escrow agreement. It was therefore proper to bring the grantors and depositary into court and thus procure a determination of the existence and validity of the contract, and whether there had been compliance with its conditions as well as the right of the plaintiff to the delivery of the deed. It is a rule of equity that all matters involved in a controversy between parties to a suit shall so far as practicable be adjudicated in that suit, and thus put an end to the litigation.
The defendants suggest that the contract was not valid be
The contention, that the transfer was void because the deed was signed and placed in the bank for delivery in reliance upon the statements made in the letter of Judge Price, is without merit. There was nothing in that letter to mislead them. He wrote to and dealt with them at arm’s length, telling them that he had been employed as an attorney for the plaintiff and that if they refused to carry out the contract he would bring an action against them to compel performance. The legal effect of their agreement and conduct was stated by him, and further, that the plaintiff would insist that the transaction be closed according to the contract. They had no reason to rely on statements as to the law made by an attorney of their adversary. His representations related to the law of the controversy that had arisen between the parties and, besides, it appears that the rules of law were correctly stated by the at
It is further urged that the failure of the agent to inform defendants of the advance of the price of land avoided the contract. This is not a litigation between the agent and the owner and, besides, the land was not listed to be sold at its actual value but at a specified price fixed by the owner himself. There had been a slight advance in values because of the promise of good crops in the vicinity, but it appears that this promise was not realized at the harvest time, and further, it appears that the defendants had knowledge of the crop conditions. before the sale was made.
Another contention is that the contract should not be enforced because the sale was made to the wife of the agent. An agent should, of course, deal with his principal openly and fairly, and it devolves on him to disclose any interest he may have in the property which is the subject of the agency. An agent, however, may be the purchaser of the property intrusted to him to sell, if it is done with the knowledge and consent of the principal. On account of the relationship between the agent and his wife, good faith and fair dealing probably required a disclosure as to who was purchasing the land, but it appears that the owner was fully informed in this respect. Long before the execution of the deed the agent informed the owner that the sale had been made to his wife. She was designated as the purchaser in the contract and was named as grantee in the deed, and further, the bank was instructed by the defendant to deliver the deed to her upon compliance with the terms of the contract. Since the-defendants had full information as to the purchaser when the deed and final contract were made, the rule.invoked by the defendants does not apply.
Nor is there any ground for the contention that the money tendered to the bank as a cash payment was insufficient. The amount tendered was made through the agent who withheld the amount of his commission. It had been agreed between the parties that the commission should be taken from the cash payment and the amount was stipulated in the contract deposited with the bank. Instructions had been given to the bank to close the transaction according to the terms of the contract.
It is further urged that the findings are not justified by the evidence. The findings were made in great detail, much greater than was necessary. Those that are material to the determination of the real issues in the case are well supported by the testimony, but it is not deemed necessary to recount and review the evidence supporting each of the findings questioned. It is clear that the case was fairly and thoroughly considered by the trial court and that a correct result was reached.
The judgment is affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jeannette Neal v. M. D. Owings and Lillie R. Owings, and The First State Bank of Minneola
- Cited By
- 5 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- SYLLABUS BY THE COURT. 1. Specific Performance — Con-bract for Sale of Land — Contract and Deed Placed in Escrow to Awadt Performance by Purchaser — Purchaser Complied with Contract — Depositary at Bequest of Vendor Refoised Delivery of Deed — Delivery of Deed Ordered. An owner of land employed a broker to negotiate a sale of it at a fixed price and on prescribed terms. The broker'procured his wife as a purchaser of the land, notified the owner of the fact and sent him a contract of sale, but the owner found provisions in it that were not satisfactory and then set out conditions which he stated would be satisfactory to him. A contract which met his requirements was prepared and forwarded to him together with a deed ready for execution. The owner did not execute the conveyance at once, stating as a reason for the delay that his wife refused to join in the execution of the conveyance. After consulting with a friend and receiving a letter from the attorney of the purchaser as to the rights and liabilities of the owner and purchaser, the contract was signed, the deed executed by the owner and his wife, and these were placed in the possession of a depositary agreed upon, to be delivered upon compliance by the purchaser with the conditions of the sale. The purchaser found the abstract of title to be satisfactory, accepted the conditions of sale and was proceeding to complete the transaction when the owner notified the depositary to withhold delivery of the conveyance, and this request the depositary observed. In an action against the depositary and the owner and his wife, it is held that a valid contract of sale was made, and that by the placing of the executed deed in the hands of the mutually chosen depositary to be delivered upon compliance with the conditions of the contract by the purchaser and the subsequent compliance with these conditions, the purchaser became the equitable owner of the land and entitled to a delivery of the deed. 2. Same — Refusal to Deliver Deed Not Justified. The notice given by the owner to the depositary to withhold delivery of the instrument, did not justify the depositary in refusing a delivery. 3. Same — Transfer of Title — Manual Delivery of Deed Not Essential. Under the circumstances a manual delivery of the deed to the purchaser was not essential to the transfer of the equitable title to the land to her. 4. Same — Action to Compel Delivery of Deed Proper Remedy Upon the refusal of a delivery of the deed the purchaser brought an action against the owner and his wife who were asserting that the contract was invalid and also against the depositary to have adjudicated the right to a conveyance and to compel a delivery o£ the deed placed, in the hands of the depositary. Held, to he a proper remedy. 5. Same — ■Memorandum in Writing — Statute of Frauds. The contract, deed and instruction to the depositary as to delivery, constituted a sufficient memorandum in writing to take the transaction out of the statute of frauds. 6. Same — Voluntary Execution of Deed — No Coercion. The claim, that the execution of the deed was involuntary and invalid because the attorney of the purchaser in a letter to the owner stated that the contract was binding upon him and that if it was not carried out he would bring an action to compel the completion of the contract is without merit. 7. Same — Advance in Value of Land. The failure of the broker to inform the owner of a slight advance in the value of lands is held under the circumstances not to be a good ground of defense to the action brought by the purchaser. 8. Same — Identity of Purchaser Known to Vendor. The owner being fully informed that the purchaser was the wife of the broker before the contract and deed were executed, the relationship furnished no ground for refusing to complete the transaction. 9. Same — Terms of Contract Complied with by Purchaser. The evidence examined, and it is held that it was sufficient to show a substantial compliance with the contract conditions by the purchaser, including the tender of sufficient amount as a cash payment for the land. 10. Same — Appointment of Receiver — Proper Remedy. It was competent for the court to appoint a receiver to care for crops involved in the sale and to prevent waste and deterioration of the property during the period of litigation.