Briscoe v. Shoppers News, Inc.

664 S.W.2d 886, 10 Ark. App. 395, 1984 Ark. App. LEXIS 1506
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedFebruary 29, 1984
DocketCA83-311
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 664 S.W.2d 886 (Briscoe v. Shoppers News, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Briscoe v. Shoppers News, Inc., 664 S.W.2d 886, 10 Ark. App. 395, 1984 Ark. App. LEXIS 1506 (Ark. Ct. App. 1984).

Opinion

George K. Cracraft, Judge.

Gladys Briscoe appeals from a decree of the Chancery Court of Pulaski County alleging several errors. We find no merit in any of them and affirm.

Gladys Briscoe was the owner of a five-acre tract on which her residence was located. In February 1971 she entered into a lease purchase agreement with Shoppers News, Inc. in which she agreed to construct an office building at a cost of approximately $30,000 on a quarter acre tract behind her residence and lease it to Shoppers News for a term of eight years and four months at a rental of $300 per month. She also agreed to provide a thirty-foot easement for access along the south side of the property extending to the center of Mabelvale Pike. Shoppers News was granted an option to purchase the leased premises at the end of the lease term for a further consideration of $6,000. The agreement recited that Briscoe was constructing an office building adjacent to Shoppers News and granted Shoppers News a first refusal to purchase it and the property on which her home was located should she elect to sell it. The lease also contained the following provisions:

It is understood that the property upon which the building is so constructed will be subject to a mortgage, but it is also understood that in the event of purchase by the lessee, the property will be conveyed by warranty deed showing a clear and merchantable title. In the event the lessor shall default in the payment of the mortgage payments against said property, the Shopper News, Inc. shall have the right to continue these same payments with the mortgagee for the purchase of the property described in this instrument.

On March 10, 1971 Briscoe obtained the financing for the construction of the Shoppers News building by executing a note in the sum of $30,000 payable to the appellee, Bland Adkins, and securing the note by a mortgage on her entire five-acre tract. In December, Briscoe executed a note for an additional $30,000 to Bland Adkins also secured by a mortgage on the entire five-acre tract. The first $30,000 was used to build the Shoppers News building but the second $30,000 was used only for erecting an additional office building and for improvements on Briscoe’s residence.

Subsequently Briscoe became indebted to the First National Bank of Little Rock and secured that indebtedness by a mortgage on a part of the five-acre tract which did not include the Shoppers News leasehold.

At the time the lease purchase agreement was executed Briscoe was one of seven equal shareholders in Shoppers News and was employed by it. Tommy Trent subsequently acquired a controlling interest in the corporation and terminated Briscoe’s employment at Shoppers News in September 1972.

The litigation between Briscoe and Shoppers News began in 1974 when Shoppers News brought an action seeking to enjoin her from interfering with its access to the property. She counterclaimed against Shoppers News and Tommy Trent seeking an accounting and other relief not involved in this proceeding. In 1974 the chancery court entered a “partial decree” declaring that Shoppers News was entitled to an easement across Briscoe’s property thirty feet in width “along the south line of the leased property and extending to the center of Mabel vale Pike.” The record does not reflect any action on the accounting issues.

In 1979 at the termination of the term provided in the lease, Shoppers News gave notice of its election to purchase the Shoppers News building and tendered into court the $6,000 purchase price. Briscoe contended that the option had not been exercised properly but the chancery court entered an order directing specific performance. This order was appealed to the Court of Appeals which affirmed the decree of the chancellor but expressly stated that it did not purport to deal with any issues which remained pending. Upon remand the chancellor entered an order directing Briscoe to execute and deliver to Shoppers News a warranty deed to the leased property “free of all liens and encumbrances.”

After Shoppers News made its last payment of rent under the lease agreement Briscoe defaulted on the payments of her notes to Bland Adkins and First National Bank and both mortgagees instituted foreclosure proceedings. The three cases were then consolidated for trial. The chancellor found that Briscoe owed Adkins in excess of $47,000 and was indebted to the First National Bank of Little Rock for a balance in excess of $6,900 and ordered the entire five-acre tract sold by the Commissioner. In that decree the court also awarded an attorney’s fee of $670 to Adkins and $695 to First National Bank of Little Rock.

After that decree was entered counsel for Briscoe and the mortgagees pointed out that there were errors in the decree which should be corrected. The chancellor then entered an amended and substituted decree in which it granted Adkins judgment against Briscoe for over $53,000, ordered an attorney’s fee of $5,300, corrected a description of the five-acre tract and the mortgage to the First National Bank of Little Rock, granted the bank judgment in the amount of $7,000, awarded it an attorney’s fee in the amount of $700, recited that “by agreement of the parties all of the lands would be sold in one tract,” and reserved control of the cause for further orders as may be necessary to protect the rights of the parties after the report of the Commissioner. Briscoe appeals from all orders entered in the consolidated cases. Shoppers News does not cross-appeal.

The appellant first contends that the chancellor erred in his construction of the lease purchase agreement and in directing her to execute a warranty deed “free and clear of all liens and encumbrances.” She argues that the contract did not provide £or a deed free of encumbrances but only a “warranty deed showing clear and merchantable title.” She argues that one can convey property subject to a mortgage by warranty deed and that such deeds providing for an assumption of the mortgage are common. This argument presupposes the validity of her contention that the clause in question provided for an assumption by Shoppers News. In this regard she argues that as that provision gave Briscoe a right to default, that language imposed on Shoppers News the duty to assume in the event of default. The provisions on which she relies merely gave Shoppers News a right to protect its own interest. It did not impose any obligation to assume the mortgage. We conclude that the provisions referred to required that Briscoe convey by a warranty deed containing general warranties against all defects and encumbrances. We find no error in the chancellor’s ruling.

The appellant next contends that the chancellor erred in not ruling on the scope of the easement granted to Shoppers News. The order of the court provided that the easement be thirty feet wide and run along the south line of the leased premises extending eastwardly across the remaining lands to Mabelvale Pike. It declared that appellant must not interfere with the use of that portion of it running across her lands and that Shoppers News must not interfere with her use of the strip. The easement was clearly defined in the court’s order.

Appellant argues that the chancellor should have ruled further because there was evidence that Shoppers News had been using the easement for purpose other than ingress and egress.

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Bluebook (online)
664 S.W.2d 886, 10 Ark. App. 395, 1984 Ark. App. LEXIS 1506, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/briscoe-v-shoppers-news-inc-arkctapp-1984.