Bruce v. Cosden Oil & Gas Co.

1926 OK 28, 246 P. 826, 119 Okla. 28, 1926 Okla. LEXIS 255
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedJanuary 26, 1926
Docket16048
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 1926 OK 28 (Bruce v. Cosden Oil & Gas Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bruce v. Cosden Oil & Gas Co., 1926 OK 28, 246 P. 826, 119 Okla. 28, 1926 Okla. LEXIS 255 (Okla. 1926).

Opinion

Opinion by

STEPHENSON, C.

Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, was enrolled as a Creek freedwoman, and the S.E.% of section 33, twp. 15N., range 12E., was allotted to her as her distributive share of the tribal lands. The N.E.% of section 34, twp. 15N., range 12E., was allotted to the sister of Clarieta. J. H. Thigpen, who was engaged in the practice of law at Eufaula, was appointed guardian of the person and estate of Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, and her sister. The guardian- filed a written application in the county court of Wagoner county, wherein he set forth that Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, was enrolled as a Creek freedwoman *29 and received her allotment. The petition then proceeded to describe the N.W.i4 of section 34, twp. 15N., range 12E., and prayed the court for authority to sell an oil and gas lease upon said lands for Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson. The sale was authorized, confirmed, and the lease sold and delivered upon the lands described in the petition to D. W. Rainey on December 31, 1912. The order of confirmation described the N.W.%, and the recorded lease described the land as the S.E.% of section 33. Interests in the lease were assigned to various parties in the course of time, who are defendants in this action. The two allotments at the time of the sale were situated In undeveloped territory, and had but little apparent potential value for oil and gas.

J. H. Thigpen received rentals on the lease for Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, and gave his receipt as guardian, wherein the true description of her allotment was made. The lessee received a transcript of the probate proceedings, wherein the allotment of this plaintiff was described. The petition, confirmation, and a copy of the lease, which were part of the probate proceedings and records of the guardianship case, described the lands allotted to the plaintiff’s sister.' It is the contention of the plaintiff that tlis probate proceedings undertook to sell an 011 and gas lease upon the lands of her sister and not upon her own allotment; that the purported probate proceedings were null and void and conveyed no interest from the plaintiff in her allotment. The plaintiff did not contend that fraud was practiced by the lessee or her guardian in the attempted probate sale. There is no contention made by the plaintiff that the consideration paid for the lease was disproportionate to the value of a lease on her allotment. The assignees of the lessee went into possession of the allotment of the plaintiff described as the S. E. %, section 33, twp. 15 N., range 12 E., and developed oil production in paying quantities on the S.E.14 of S.E.%, section 33.

The plaintiff became of age on February 0, 1923, and commenced her action in this cause on February 8, 1923, to quiet title to her allotment and for an accounting between plaintiffs and the defendants, who were assignees under the Rainey lease, for the oil produced and sold from her allotment;

The plaintiff, after the institution of the suit, conveyed her allotment to Green Bruce and E. P. Thompson as trustees. The trustees were authorized to conduct and manage this suit and litigation for the interest of Clarieta. The plaintiff joined by her hlsband, Green Bruce, on March 5, 1923, executed and delivered a written assignment of one-half royalty interest covering the lease involved in this action to the Commercial National Bank of Muskogee. The assignors delivered to the Cosden Pipe Line Company a transfer order authorizing the latter to pay one-half of the value of the royalty oil produced and saved from the premises to the Commercial National Bank. Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, joined by her husband, Green Bruce, on June 21, 1923, sold and assigned one-half of the royalty in and to the oil produced and saved from the premises to Robert V. Anderson, and delivered to the Cosden Pipe Line Company a transfer order in favor of the assignee for the oil runs produced and saved from the premises in accordance with the written assignment. Clarieta Bruce, nee Jackson, filed her amended petition, wherein she was joined by E. OP. Thompson and Green Bruce as her duly appointed trustees. The amended petition was filed in the cause on May 29, 1923, wherein the several matters herein stated were set forth, and a copy of the trust deed attached to the petition.

The trial of the cause resulted in a judgment for the defendants. The plaintiffs have appealed the cause, and assign several of the proceedings had in the trial of the cause as error for reversal here. The main proposition assigned for reversal is: That the judgment of the court in favor of the defendants is contrary to the law and the evidence.

The defendants submit the proposition that the description, as used in the sale proceedings and in the lease, resulted in an oil and gas lease which could be made effective in a court proceeding, in favor of the original lessee, on the S.E.14 of section 38, twp. 15N., range 12E. The Cosden Oil & Gas Company claims the oil and gas rights in the W.% of the S.E.%, section 33, twp. 15N., range 12E., through the sale proceedings and lease. The other defendants claim the oil interest in the E.% of the same quarter section through the sale proceedings. The guardian who conducted the probate proceedings died before the institution of this suit; the county judge who conducted the sale proceedings also died prior to this action.

The petition for the sale of the oil and gas lease contained the following recital:

“That Clarieta Jackson is a minor and duly enrolled citizen of the Creek Nation, and that she had allotted to her and has received as her allotment in the Creek Nation, and now owns in fee simple the following described lands.”

*30 Then followed §. description of lands as the N.W.% of section 34, twp. 15N., range 12E. The attorneys for the defendants in error, in oral argument, made the point that the allegations of the petition for the sale of an oil and gas lease described the land to be leased as the allotment of the plaintiff in error; that the particular description was in error and did not describe the land referred to in the general description.

We think the language used is not susceptible of the construction contended for by the defendants. The land to which the court’s attention was directed was that particularly described as the N.W.34 of section 34. It is likely that the guardian, who was an attorney, prepared the sale proceedings, and knew of his own personal knowledge which subdivision of the two sections constituted the allotments of the plaintiff and her sister. The guardian no doubt relied upon his memory for the proper description of the plaintiff’s land in the preparation of the sales proceedings. A copy of the sale proceedings delivered to the lessee contained the description of the plaintiff’s allotment-as the S.E.% of section 33. The lease recorded also properly described the plaintiff’s allotment. However, the petition, confirmation, and copy of the lease, in the court files of- the guardianship cause, described the land as the N.W.Vi of section 34, twp. 15N., range 12E. There is no fraud charged against any of the parties to this action, or against the guardian in relation to the sale of the oil and gas lease. It is likely that the guardian discovered his error at the time he made the copies of the sales proceedings and changed such copies so as to describe the plaintiff’s allotment, and intended to correct the original court records accordingly.

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Bluebook (online)
1926 OK 28, 246 P. 826, 119 Okla. 28, 1926 Okla. LEXIS 255, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bruce-v-cosden-oil-gas-co-okla-1926.