O'Hair v. Sutherland
O'Hair v. Sutherland
Opinion of the Court
This is a trial de novo. On August 16, 1911, defendant was the owner of a quarter section of land in Stark county, and upon that date traded the same to plaintiff, giving a warranty deed with an expressed consideration of $2,900, free of all encumbrances excepting a mortgage for $3,500 to the Winona Savings Bank, which plaintiff assumed. The land was traded to plaintiff for a house and the furniture therein contained, situated in the city of Dickinson, plaintiff paying $200 in addition. Plaintiff now attempts to rescind the contract upon the grounds that there were of record against said land two other mortgages; to wit, one for $650 and one for $5,700.
We do not understand that there is much dispute between the parties as to the law applicable. Section 5933, Oomp. Laws 1913, .provides that “a contract is extinguished by its rescission.” And § 5934: “A party to a contract may rescind the same in the following cases only: 1. If the consent of the party rescinding, or of any party jointly contracting with him, was given by mistake or obtained' through duress, menace, fraud or undue influence exercised, by [the plaintiff] or with the connivance of the party as to whom he rescinds or of any other party to the contract jointly interested with such party. 2. If through the fault of the party as to whom he rescinds the consideration for his obligation fails in whole or in part.” (3, 4, and 5 not in point.) Section 5849, Comp. Laws 1913, reads: “Actual fraud within the meaning of this chapter, consists in any of the following acts committed by a party to the contract, or with his connivance with intent to deceive another party thereto or to induce him to enter into the contract. 1. . . . 2. The positive assertion in a manner not warranted by the information of the person making it of that which is not true, though he believes it to be true.” 1, 3, 4, and 5 not in point). Plaintiff justifies his rescission upon the grounds of fraud and failure of consideration.
Defendant testifies:
“I got this land from Mr. Vaughn. His deed to me mentioned the $3,500 mortgage, the same as I had mentioned it to Mr. O’Hair, and no other. I had known Vaughn for twenty years, and had confidence in his assertion and warranty that there was no encumbrance against the land except the $3,500 mortgage. The deeds from Mr. O’Hair to me and from me to Mr. O’Hair were drawn up in Mr. Hevener’s office. While Mr. Hevener was drawing up the papers, we*110 talked over the deal, and I told him there was $3,500 against it, and if he wished he could look it up on the records any time. I told him I had never looked up the title, just took Vaughn’s deed for it.
. . I believed at all times that there was but $3,500 against the land. I did not know it; just took Vaughn’s word for it.”
This portion of defendant’s testimony is practically admitted by plaintiff, who testifies as follows:
Q. Did not Sutherland tell you at that time that he was deeding: the land over to you just as he got it from Mr. Vaughn?
A. I believe he did.
Plaintiff, however, claims that there was a conversation had at the farm before this, in which plaintiff told him that the land was “clean as a whistle” excepting for the $3,500. Defendant’s version is further corroborated by Hevener, the attorney who drew up the papers and heard all the conversations that occurred at that time. He says: “He (defendant) said that he had purchased this land of Jerome Vaughn and had received”an abstract from him; had taken the land subject to a mortgage of $3,500 and was deeding it to Mr. O’Hair under the same conditions that he received it.” That defendant was surprised to learn of the condition of the title is testified to by the plaintiff himself. It is undisputed that defendant practically cleared the title of such defects within six weeks after the matter was brought to his attention, and, as a matter of fact, most of the $5,Y00 mortgage arose from the peculiar manner in which the deeds and mortgages had been drawn up.
Appellant has cited us to the case of Joines v. Combs, 38 Okla. 380, 132 Pac. 1115, which is a construction of a statute identical with ours. An examination of this case shows that the defendant therein sold Indian allotment lands to the plaintiff and represented to him that the title was good, but the court says: “The lands involved consist of 920 acres, for the most part, of inherited Indian allotments, reliance for title in which is placed upon deeds executed by the parties purporting to be the heirs of the descendants [decedents] and generally without probate proceedings to establish the verity thereof. In addition thereto there is 100 acres, title to which was secured direct from the original allottee, W. M.' James, who is enrolled as a full blood Choctaw and
Decker v. Schulze, 11 Wash. 47, 27 L.R.A. 335, 48 Am. St. Rep. 858, 39 Pac. 261; Miller v. Miller, 47 Minn. 546, 50 N. W. 612; Sonnesyn v. Akin, 14 N. D. 248, 104 N. W. 1026; Nelson v. Grondahl, 12 N. D. 130 (at top page 133), 96 N. W. 299; note in 15 L.R.A.(N.S.) 1042.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- JAMES O'HAIR v. S. S. SUTHERLAND
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- Published