Wallace v. Burgett
Wallace v. Burgett
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff brought an action for the possession of a lot with two residences on it. Defendant pleaded
Plaintiff had been the wife of defendant’s son during his lifetime. In 1948 the son and plaintiff were without a place to live and in difficult financial straits. Defendant advanced a thousand dollars as the down payment on the purchase of a home by plaintiff and her husband. Defendant lived with them on the purchased property from the date of purchase. She had not previously lived with them. The money advanced for the down payment was part of $1,200 received from the sale of property she owned in Minnesota and with which it was anticipated she would use to help provide herself with a home in Oregon.
The purchased premises had on it a house and garage. The garage was remodeled as a place for defendant to live. The work was done by the son and another of defendant’s children over a period of years. In August, 1949, the son executed a note to defendant in the sum of $2,000. A memorandum on the note in defendant’s handwriting indicated it included the $1,000 down payment on the purchase of the real property, plus $500 previously loaned defendant’s son, plus $415 “loaned” on the cost of remodeling the garage, and $85 which was a monthly payment on the
In 1958 the son died. In 1960 plaintiff remarried and moved away to reside with her new husband. In 1964 defendant built a storeroom upon the structure in which she resided. Defendant’s other son, the one who helped renovate the structure in which defendant lived, testified as follows:
# # # #
“Q (By Mr. Coblens) Was anything said that your mother would have a place to stay as long as she lived?
“A As —
“MR. CONWAY: When was that, Counsel please?
“THE COURT: Yes.
“Q (By Mr. Coblens) At the time that your mother put the thousand dollars down?
“A No. Truthfully, it wasn’t said at that time.
“Q Was it said at any later time?
“A It was when we started to develop this little house.
“Q Who said it?
“A Well, my brother and I more or less agreed*452 to that because she was asked to put the money in and it turned out to be a considerable amount, and it was just said between us that ‘She is old, that’s her home,’ and that’s it.
“Q And she could have a place to live the rest of her life?
“A That’s true.”
# # # * *
Defendant did not testify as to any conversation with her son or plaintiff relative to an agreement in accordance with her pleaded defenses. She introduced documentary evidence by way of letters signed by her son and receipts signed by plaintiff and her son for money, which referred to the structure in which she lived as “her house.” After the trial judge had made his decision in favor of plaintiff and was attempting to explain it to defendant, who was 76 years of age and hard of hearing, she told him she understood she was one of the buyers and would have her name on the deed.
The trial judge based his decision in favor of plaintiff on the proposition that if any agreement was made it was made with defendant’s son and not with plaintiff. Therefore, it was only a charge upon the son’s interest in the property, which interest terminated upon his death because the property was held by him and plaintiff in tenancy by the entirety. We would prefer to decide it upon the proposition that the defendant did not carry the burden of proving the agreement she alleged. The taking of the note from her son was inconsistent with her theory that she advanced the money as consideration for an agreement by plaintiff and defendant’s son that they would allow her to reside in the renovated structure the balance of her life. Por the first time defendant urged
The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- WALLACE v. BURGETT
- Status
- Published