Simpson v. Wingate
Simpson v. Wingate
Opinion of the Court
This is an action by the plaintiff to vacate certain deeds, and to have the title to the land therein described vested in her, and the trial court granted her the relief she prayed.
Plaintiff, to sustain her case, introduced a contract, as follows:
“This agreement, made and entered into this twenty-ninth day of March, 1887, by and between Mary L. Simpson of Jackson county, Missouri, and B. N. Wingate, of the same place, witnesseth: That the said Mary L. Simpson has this day deeded to said B. N. Wingate a certain tract of land, containing sixty-eight and seventy-three-hundredths acres, off of the south end of the southeast quarter of section 15, township 48, range 33, on said land, there being a pres-en incumbrance of 87,500, and in which said land the said Mary L. Simpson has also a cash equity of 83,500, and that the said Simpson has deeded said land to said Wingate for the purpose of convenience in making a sale of said land; and further, for and in consideration of the sum of five dollars (85) in cash and*10 other valuable considerations not herein specified, and paid to said Simpson by said Wingate, the receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, it is hereby agreed and understood by the parties hereto that, as soon as a sale of said land has been consummated, then the ?aid Simpson is, to first get all of her cash equity of $3,500, together with all the expenses incurred in making sale and the expense of carrying said land until sale is made and consummated ; and, after that has been paid, then the balance of the money obtained from said sale, or any profit in notes or money arising from said sale, to be equally divided between the said Mary L. Simpson and B. N. Wingate, share and share alike; and that the said Wingate is hereby authorized to sell, or employ others to sell, said land or portions thereof, and to use his discretion as to the best manner and terms of disposing of said land or portions thereof; at the same time it is distinctly understood that he shall not consider any offer or make any sale of said land, or any share therein, for any sum less than at the rate of two hundred dollars ($200) per acre.
“This agreement, of which there are two copies, one to be held hf each of the parties hereto, is made simply for the purpose of avoiding any misunderstanding that might arise, or, in the event of the death of either party, to show what each party hereto is justly entitled to.
“In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands and seals this twenty-ninth day of March, 1887, in presence of W. H. Brown, a notary public, and in presence of each other.
“[Seal] Mart L. Simpson,
“[Seal] B. N. Wingate.”
This was duly acknowledged.
The following is the agreed statement of- facts: “ That W. W. Egnew and B. N. Wingate were partners' engaged in the real-estate business in Kansas City, Missouri, from about May 1, 1886, to December 1, 1887;
The contention of defendants is that the deed to Wingate made him a trustee for Mrs. Simpson as to her interest, and that the deed and contract, which were executed contemporaneously, show that his power to sell is coupled with an interest, and that she cannot revoke it at all, and that he had an interest, in the property under the contract, that descends to his heirs. We do not think this position is tenable. Wingate took the legal title simply to make it more convenient to convey the title when the property was sold. The whole transaction constituted him an agent only to sell this land, and when he died this power to sell did not descend to his heirs. It, evidently, was not in the contemplation of the parties that this agency to sell should be devolved on Wingate’s widow and minor children in case of his death. It is true the contract recites that it was made simply for the purpose of avoiding any misunderstanding that might arise, or in the event of the death of either party- to show what each was justly entitled to ; but we do not regard that language as justifying the construction contended for by defendants, that it was intended by the parties to give Wingate such interest in the land as would descend to his heirs at his death. It was not only appropriate, but indeed essential, that the contract should have been made; for without it the capacity in which Wingate held the title could not have been known, or at least not so well known. If Wingate had sold the property during his lifetime it would have been not only important to plaintiff, but also to his administrator to know the exact interest his estate had in the proceeds of the sale.
But beyond any controversy, after Wingate conveyed the property to Egnew, he had no interest that could descend to his heirs at his death, and his heirs
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