Jones v. Fink
Jones v. Fink
Opinion of the Court
This suit was tried below upon the amended petition of plaintiff Fink, one of the appellees here, which declared upon some vendor’s lien notes in the aggregate sum of $2,500, together with interest and attorney’s fees, alleged to have been executed by the appellants Thomas and Joseph Jones, and sought foreclosure of such lien upon two tracts of land described in the notes. The notes had been originally given to B. L. Lev-inson, who contemporaneously therewith had deeded the land to appellants, retaining the vendor’s lien in both the deed and notes; Fink acquired the notes and the lien from Levinson. ⅝
In answering Fink’s suit appellants im-pleaded Levinson, in effect alleging that on, before, and since the date of his deed to them and of their notes to him, October 15, 1915, they were each living upon and occupying with their families one of the two tracts of land as a homestead; that, although they both were then indebted to Levinson, no part of it was secured by any valid lien upon these lands; that on the date given Levinson induced them and their wives to convey the lands to him in cancellation of their preexisting indebtedness, upon the representation that such plan would rid them of some heirs who had been claiming the property adversely to them, and under agreement that if they would do so, he would then at once sell the land back to them, giving them eight years within which to pay for it; that on the same day he did make the reconveyance to and exact of them the vendor’s lien notes herein sued upon by Fink; that the sale by appellants to Levinson and his reconveyance to them were not real, but simulated transactions, and amounted merely to a devise for ingrafting an apparent lien upon the homestead in violation of the Constitution. Further averments were that Fink had notice of all the facts pleaded at the time the notes and alleged lien were transferred to him by Levinson, but if not, and he should be found to be an innocent purchaser, that under the facts Levinson became a trustee, and they sought recovery of their resulting damages from him. Levinson answered and joined issue upon the matters pleaded as to him.
The case was tried without a jury. The trial court found the sale and reconveyance to be bona fide transactions, rendered judgment against appellants for the principal, interest, and attorney’s fees provided for in the notes, for foreclosure of the lien therein retained upon the land, and decreed that appellants take nothing by their cross-action against Levinson. From that judgment this appeal is prosecuted.
Under the first two assignments it is contended that the court erred in decreeing a foreclosure of the vendor’s lien declared upon, because it is said the undisputed evidence, or at least its great weight and preponderance, “showed that the land covered thereby was the homestead of the defendants; that no part of the debt claimed to be secured by said lien was for taxes, improvemfents, or purchase money of or on said land; and that the sale and reconveyance by which such lien was apparently fixed upon said land was merely a device by which the codefendant Levinson, to the knowledge of the plaintiff Fink, attempted to ingraft an apparent lien upon appellants’ homestead, in violation of section 50 of article 16 of the Constitution of Texas.”
Upon the issue thus raised the trial court found these facts: That Sally Early, the mother of appellants, who died intestate prior to the institution of this suit, some time before her death, while a widow and when she owned the lands here involved as her individual property, gave a deed of trust thereon to a Mr. Hitchcock to secure a note for $1,075, which instrument her sons, the appellants here, executed with her. The findings then continue:
“That in the fall of 1915,' said Tom Jones and Joe Jones were indebted to said B. L. Levin-son in the sum of $1,075, with a year’s interest and attorney’s fees, and that this indebtedness was secured by a deed of trust on the two tracts of land involved herein, being the trust deed given by the defendants and their mother, during her lifetime, to Hitchcock, and transferred by Hitchcock to Levinson. In addition *779 tó the indebtedness, tbe defendant Tom Jones was indebted to said Levinson for supplies furnished him, this indebtedness being evidenced by a note for $505; that in the fall of 1015, said B. L. Levinson was pressing the defendants for a settlement of both of these debts, and the defendants were unable to pay either of said debts; that as a result these defendants and said B. L. Levinson met in the office of Messrs. Bowers & Bowers, attorneys, at Caldwell, Tex., which meeting took place at about 9 o’clock a. m. on October 15, 1915; that the defendants at that time agreed to make a deed to the two tracts of land involved herein, to the said B. L. Levinson, in full settlement of the two debts as above set out; that the question of making such deed with the understanding that it was to be retransferred was broached by defendants, but that the said B. L. Levinson refused to take the deed with any agreement to retransfer; that the deed was made, executed, and delivered by the two defendants and their wives to said B. L. Levinson, without any conditions or agreements to hold same in trust, or to reconvey; that it was a straight warranty deed, conveying without reservation, either written or parol, the two tracts of land involved herein; that this transaction took place in the forenoon, about 9 o’clock, and when the deed was passed the transaction was closed and complete; that the consideration in said deed was the cancellation of the notes, as stated, and the notes were actually delivered to the defendants for cancellation; and that it was a valuable and adequate consideration for said transfer.
“That after the passing of the deed above stated, the defendants approached said B. L. Levinson and asked him to sell said land back to them, and that they make a trade with Levin-son for him to sell said two tracts' of land to them for a consideration of $2,500; that this trade was made in the afternoon of the same day that transfer was made to Levinson, but the two were separate and distinct transactions; that the parties met in the office of the attorneys, and Levinson made, executed, and delivered his general warranty deed, conveying said two tracts of land to the defendants; that the consideration expressed in said deed was $3,000, $500 in cash, and the series of notes upon which foreclosure is sought herein; that said $500 in cash was in fact never passed, but the true consideration was the series of notes mentioned and described in the plaintiff’s petition; that this transaction was not simulated, but that each transaction was distinct and separate, and complete within itself; that said transactions were not made for the purpose of taking the land in trust for the use of defendants, but that said deeds were bona fide transactions, and that each conveyed the lands as stated; that under the last-mentioned deed, and in the notes upon which the foreclosure is sought herein, the defendants became indebted to said B. L. Levinson in the sum of $2,500.”
“That prior to her death said Sallie Early borrowed money from one F. H. Hitchcock, and to secure its payment executed and delivered a *780 deed of trust on the two' tracts of land involved in this suit; that said Sallie Early died intestate, and the two tracts of land in controversy were inherited by the two defendants herein; and that the land passed to them, charged with the Hitchcock debt and deed of trust.”
It thus appears that these lands came to appellants by1 inheritance, that is, as their separate property, charged with an admittedly valid incumbrance they had themselves' joined in placing thereon before their interest attached. Moreover, the record does not disclose whether at that- time they were even possessed of the better halves, their wives. Surely, in such circumstances, the fact, if such it be, that one of the wives did not acknowledge the deed to Levinson until one day after its execution and delivery to him could not affect its validity. There is no contention here that Joe Jones did anything to defraud his wife, and in a case of that character the courts have gone so far as to hold that the husband, in adjusting a prior lien, may convey the homestead without join-der of the wife at all. Evans v. Marlow, 149 S. W. 347.
Under the third and fourth assignments the judgment is assailed as fundamentally erroneous, because, it is claimed, the record shows upon its face that appellee Fink, by his 'original petition, declared upon his right to recover the land described therein as a consequence of appellants’ failure to pay the notes, thereby electing to rescind his contract of sale to them and barring himself from thereafter standing upon and essaying to enforce it, as in effect he did in the amended petition by seeking a foreclosure of his lien.
The conclusions stated require the ovei’rul-ing of all assignments and the affirmance of the judgment, which order has been entered.
Affirmed.
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Reference
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- JONES Et Al. v. FINK Et Al.
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