Clements v. Williams

146 S.W.2d 215
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 4, 1940
DocketNo. 8989.
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 146 S.W.2d 215 (Clements v. Williams) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Clements v. Williams, 146 S.W.2d 215 (Tex. Ct. App. 1940).

Opinion

BLAIR, Justice.

The opinion on a former appeal remanding this cause is reported in 128 S.W.2d 103. After the remand the parties re-pleaded, but the issues remained substantially the same. That is, appellant sued ap-pellee in trespass to try title for the land described. Appellee pleaded not guilty, and by cross-action sought to cancel his two deeds conveying the land to appellant, alleging that they were intended and treated by the parties as mortgages to secure two notes, one of which was alleged to be usurious, and prayed that all payments made thereon be applied to principal. Appellee also alleged that appellant obtained possession of the deeds without his knowledge or consent; that the one dated December 16, 1935, was destroyed by agreement when a part of the land conveyed by it was sold and the proceeds paid to appellant; and that possession of the deed dated February 21, 1936, conveying the land in controversy, and upon which appellant particularly relied for title, was obtained by appellant without the knowledge or consent of appellee or the escrow agent with whom the parties has placed it pending a final adjustment of their accounts. Appellant replied by a general denial, and alleged that if the note was usurious, it was the result of a mutual mistake, and prayer was that it be reformed so as to purge it of usurious interest.

On the former appeal the cause was remanded, (1) because the court refused to submit for the determination of the jury the question of whether the deed dated December 16, 1935, was intended as a mortgage; and (2) because the court permitted appellee to recover as penalty double all amounts paid on the usurious note during the two years. next preceding the filing of this suit, instead of double the amount of interest paid on the usurious loan during that period, as provided by Art. 5073, R.S.1925.

On this trial the jury found: (1) That the deed dated December 16, 1935, was intended as a mortgage; (2) that the deed dated February 21, 1936, was not to be delivered but was to remain in the possession of Judge J. Tom Higgins pending a final adjustment of accounts between appellant and appellee; and (3) that at the time appellant purchased the Clark note the true amount due thereon as between appellant and appellee was $1,236.81. Upon these findings, and findings which may be assumed to have been found by the trial court, judgment was rendered that appellant take nothing by his suit in trespass to try title, and that the deeds involved be cancelled and that title and right of possession of the land be vested in appellee, hence this appeal.

The evidence relating to all indebtedness of appellee to appellant, to the usurious loan contract, and to the payments made on all indebtedness by appellee, is substantially as on the former appeal. The evidence relating to the two deeds involved and their connection with the loan transactions is much fuller on this appeal, and we regard it as establishing as a matter of law that the deed dated December 16, 1935, conveying both the interest of ap-pellee in the 400 acres of land described and the Lampasas city property, referred *217 to as the “Home Place”-, to appellant, was intended and treated by the parties either as a mortgage or conditional sale; and that in either event such deed served its purpose and was by agreement of the parties destroyed at the time of the execution of the deed dated February 21, 1936, conveying to appellant only the Lampasas city property here involved; and upon which last deed appellant testified that he relied for title.

The total original indebtedness of appel-lee to appellant consisted of three items as follows:

1. A note for $470.60, secured by a deed of trust on the undivided interest of appellee in 400 acres of land in Lampasas County, which interest appellee inherited from his parents.

2. A note for $1,200, secured by a vendor’s lien on the Lampasas city property in' controversy, which lien was renewed and extended April 15, 1927, and the indebtedness was renewed by the $1,-457.50 usurious note involved, dated April 15, 1927.

3. An open account for $100 incurred in 1934.

Payments were made from time to time on the notes mentioned in Items 1 and 2, and a claimed balance was carried into a renewal note for $960.24, dated February 2, 1934, and secured by a deed of trust lien on both the 400-acre estate land and the Lampasas city property. Nothing was paid on this note, and on December 16, 1935, appellant claimed a balance of $1,-354.09 was due on Items 1, 2 and 3, and other expenses incurred in the preparation of various loan papers; and on that date the first deed was executed by ap-pellee, conveying to appellant the two properties covered by the deed of trust, which deed, together with a , contemporaneously executed escrow agreement were placed in a bank; the escrow agreement providing that if appellee paid appellant $1,354.09 prior to January 12, 1936, the deed should be returned to him, but that if he did not pay said sum by that time, the deed should be delivered to appellant; and a notation was made by the bank that it delivered the deed to appellant on January 13, 1936, in accordance with the escrow agreement. Appellant testified, however, that he extended the time 30 days in which appellee might pay the sum claimed, during which period ap-pellee sold his interest in the 400-acre estate land to his sister for $600, which was paid to appellant. The deed dated December 16, 1935, which had not been recorded, was taken by appellant to the office of Judge Higgins and was by agreement of the parties destroyed, and the different reasons for destroying it are not material. A deed executed by appellee conveying the 400-acre estate land to his sister was dated February 21, 1936, and on the same day appellee executed the second deed, conveying only the Lampasas city property to appellant for a recited' consideration of $758.09 paid. This deed was placed in the custody of Judge Higgins, with the understanding, as found by the jury, that'it was not to be delivered until appellant and ap-pellee had adjusted their accounts, or settled their debt, a dispute having arisen as to the balance owing by appellee to appellant. Thereafter numerous meetings were had in Judge Higgins’s office, at which appellant and appellee tried to adjust their accounts, and various written statements of the account as covered by Items 1, 2 and 3 above, and certain expenses claimed by appellant for executing the loan papers, were made by appellant for appellee, one such statement, dated July 25, 1936, being in evidence. But the parties did not reach an agreement or settlement of the indebtedness, which was claimed by appellant to be the amount of the consideration recited in the deed of February 21, 1936; and appellant testified on the trial that he was still willing to accept the amount due him by appellee and not take the property. Sometime after July, 1936, appellant went to the office of Judge Higgins and according to his testimony obtained possession of the deed from Miss Alexander, who was doing some typing for Judge Higgins at the time. Judge Higgins was not in his office at the time, and testified that the deed was taken without his knowledge or consent; and both he and appellee testified that they did not know appellant had the deed until the trial of a forcible detainer suit later brought by appellant against ap-pellee concerning the property in suit.

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Related

Clements v. Williams
147 S.W.2d 769 (Texas Supreme Court, 1941)

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Bluebook (online)
146 S.W.2d 215, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/clements-v-williams-texapp-1940.