Adair v. N. W. Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.

329 S.W.2d 33, 1959 Mo. App. LEXIS 456
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 2, 1959
DocketNo. 22961
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 329 S.W.2d 33 (Adair v. N. W. Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Adair v. N. W. Electric Power Cooperative, Inc., 329 S.W.2d 33, 1959 Mo. App. LEXIS 456 (Mo. Ct. App. 1959).

Opinion

MAUGHMER, Commissioner.

Plaintiffs had judgment against the defendant Power Cooperative in the sum of $3,497.83 as damages for trespass commit-ted in the construction and .maintenance of an electric transmission line across plaintiffs’ 290 acre farm located in Henry County, Missouri. The judgment vested in defendant a permanent easement across said lands. This easement right-of-way is some 3,400 feet long, covers approximately eight acres, and extends across the entire farm.

A statement of facts will serve to both, explain the situation and introduce the issues presented by this appeal. There was a pre-trial conference. As a result the parties admitted, stipulated and agreed: (1) That fee simple title to the farm in question was in James W. Adair on May 9, 1948, the date of his death; (2) that Minnie Adair, his widow and the third party defendant, upon his death was seized of the right of dower therein — one-third for life; that she was born May 8, 1884, and the value of her life estate or dower should be computed under and in accordance with the provisions of Sections 442.530, 442.540 and 442.550, V.A.M.S.; (3) that on June 23, 1952, the said Minnie Adair executed a document entitled “Transmission Line Easement”, which purported to grant to defendant an easement across said lands, and that she received a consideration of $244 at the time. In this document grantor warranted her title and covenanted to defend it; (4) defendant constructed the transmission line during May, 1953; (5) on June 7, 1956, Minnie Adair, third party defendant, in the Circuit Court of Henry County, Missouri, recovered judgment against defendant in the sum of $300. The amount of this judgment covered pole allowance as provided in the easement deed and damages allegedly done to some of her crops during the construction; (6) that each of- the plaintiffs at the time of the death of James W. Adair and at the time of trial owned a one-seventh interest in said farm, subject to the dower interest of Minnie Adair.

At the time Minnie Adair conveyed the easement to defendant it seems no abstract of title for the farm was in existence or was readily available. It is apparent and all parties tacitly agree that both Mrs. Adair and the defendant company, and for that matter plaintiffs, believed that Mrs. Adair was absolute owner of the land as survivor of an estate by the entirety. Learning that such was not the fact plaintiffs, heirs at law and owners of the real estate, instituted the present suit. Defendant’s defense as pleaded was three pronged.. It declared first that Mrs. Adair was acting as plaintiffs’ agent when she conveyed the easement to defendant and, therefore, plaintiffs were precluded from a recovery. Secondarily, it was claimed that she thereby perpetrated a fraud upon the defendant. Probably these defenses could not be satisfactorily established. In any event neither has been urged on this appeal. Defendant asserts further that the final judgment, involving the easement deed, by the Plenry County Circuit Court, makes all issues concerning the validity of such deed res judicata, which coupled with the absolute conveyance therein with warranty, results in making Mrs. Adair, grantor, liable to it for any damages plaintiffs might recover in the instant suit.

Mrs. Adair was joined as a third party defendant. She asserted the easement conveyance was the result of mutual mistake and sought equitable reformation thereof by the court.

The trial court sat as chancellor insofar as the equitable issues were involved. A [35]*35jury was utilized to determine if plaintiffs were entitled to recover and if so, to assess the damages to the 290 acre farm which resulted from defendant’s easement and power line construction. Sitting as a court of equity, the trial court decreed that the easement deed from Mrs. Adair to the defendant company, purporting to convey a complete easement and in which she warranted her title was the result of a mutual mistake; that the amount she received therefor was far less than the actual value of the full easement, partially rescinded the deed and reformed the same so as to convey only the interest actually owned by Mrs. Adair. The verdict of the jury was for plaintiffs and for Mrs. Adair, third party defendant, against defendant company, and assessed damages at the sum of $4,000. The court computed the share of the widow therein as provided by the statutes and as agreed to under the pre-trial stipulation, which value was $502.17. This amount was deducted from the total of the jury verdict and judgment was entered for plaintiffs and against defendant for the amount remaining; that is, $3,497.83. The judgment also specifically confirmed defendant’s easement.

The appellant Power Company makes three assignments of error: First, that it was allowed not three, but only two peremptory challenges of jurors. Second, that the court erred in reforming the easement deed and, third, that improper, prejudicial and erroneous argument was made to the jury by counsel for the third party defendant.

Appellant takes the position that the court had no power to reform Mrs. Adair’s easement deed and bottoms such assertion upon the allegation that her stated grounds for rescission and reformation had been previously adjudicated in the Henry County suit.

The two basic reasons for such rescission and reformation as asserted by Mrs. Adair and as found by the trial court were first, mutual mistake as to her title and, second, grossly inadequate consideration. The matters of pole allowance and construction damages were the only issues litigated in the Henry County suit.

It is well settled that a former judgment is a bar not only as to all matters which were raised, but also as to all defenses which could be raised. State ex rel. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. v. Hughes, 347 Mo. 549, 148 S.W.2d 576; Gibbany v. Walker, 233 Mo.App. 489, 121 S.W.2d,317. However, the equitable issues determined by the court in our particular case were not pleaded, presented, considered, adjudicated or known about by either court, counsel or by the parties in the Henry County case. Neither side at that time even knew that Mrs. Adair’s title was less than complete.

It is our opinion the court had the right to consider rescission and reformation of the easement deed. There was ample evidence to support the finding that such deed was the result of mutual mistake— both Mrs. Adair and defendant believed at the time of its execution and at the time of the Henry County judgment that her title was complete. True, she was lax in guaranteeing her absolute title without definitely knowing the extent of that title. That she, an elderly widow and little experienced in business affairs, did so is less surprising and shocking though than that defendant company with its right-of-way agents, business men and lawyers, accepted it. Based upon the total value of the easement secured by the defendant, as fixed by the jury, the $544 received by Mrs. Adair was grossly inadequate for full and complete title. This fact is especially important in our case because if the deed is to be rescinded and reformed, the parties must be returned substantially at least, to their status quo position. Actual return to status quo cannot be accomplished here as the transmission line is already built. If Mrs. Adair were held liable under her warrant of the easement and its value became fixed at $4,000, then the Power Com[36]*36pany would receive a $4,000 easement value at a cost of only $544, and Mrs.

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329 S.W.2d 33, 1959 Mo. App. LEXIS 456, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/adair-v-n-w-electric-power-cooperative-inc-moctapp-1959.