Edwards v. Lyons

1944 OK 152, 149 P.2d 495, 194 Okla. 263, 1944 Okla. LEXIS 439
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 28, 1944
DocketNo. 31342.
StatusPublished

This text of 1944 OK 152 (Edwards v. Lyons) 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
Edwards v. Lyons, 1944 OK 152, 149 P.2d 495, 194 Okla. 263, 1944 Okla. LEXIS 439 (Okla. 1944).

Opinion

RILEY, J.

This suit was commenced by Effie Lyons Edwards, plaintiff in error herein, and hereinafter referred to as plaintiff, on June 8, 1942, against Mary J. Lyons, as special administra-trix, Mary J. Lyons, individually, and Mary J. Lyons, executrix, and Mary J. Lyons et al., as legatees of S. D. Lyons, deceased. The action is one in equity to enforce an alleged contract to make a will. Plaintiff is the daughter of S. D. Lyons, who died on April 9, 1942, possessed of property of considerable value described in plaintiff’s petition, consisting of various lots in Oklahoma City. Plaintiff seeks to establish her right to 2/21sts interest in all of said property by and under an alleged contract to make a will.

S. D. Lyons, deceased, was married three times. Sadie Lyons was his second wife and the mother of plaintiff and Ruby Lyons, a son, and Allie Lyons Anthony, a daughter. Sadie Lyons died before 1926. There were other children by the first wife. Mary J. Lyons,, who was the third wife, is the widow of S. D. Lyons, deceased. There were no children by the last marriage.

The controversy out of which this action arose had its origin as far back as about 1935. On September 25, 1935, plaintiff herein, joined by her brother, Ruby Lyons, and her sister, Allie Lyons Anthony, commenced an action in the district court of Oklahoma county against S. D. Lyons seeking to establish a trust in certain property standing in the name of S. D. Lyons in which they claimed their mother owned an undivided one-half interest. That case in the district court was No. 88170 and is frequently referred to in the record by that number.

On October 9, 1935, plaintiff herein, Ruby Lyons, and Allie Lyons Anthony commenced another action in the district court against Mary J. Lyons, seeking to establish a trust in certain property standing in the name of Mary J. Lyons in which they claimed their mother, Sadie Lyons, owned an undivided one-half interest. This action was No. 88279 in the district court and is referred to in the record herein under that number.

About the same time the same children of S. D. Lyons commenced another action in the district court of Oklahoma county against S. D. Lyons wherein they sought to establish an interest in *265 certain personal property as the property of their deceased mother. This case was No. 88330 in the district court.

As a basis for their claims in said actions, plaintiffs contend that their mother, Sadie Lyons, invented a certain formula for the manufacture of a cosmetic preparation for use on colored people’s hair; that S. D. Lyons and Sadie Lyons, their father and mother, organized and operated a business under the name and style of S. D. Lyons for the manufacture and sale of said preparation, out of which they made large sums of money and invested it in real estate, taking the title in the name of S. D. Lyons, but which they claimed was actually owned by S. D. Lyons and Sadie Lyons by reason of an alleged partnership arrangement between said S. D. Lyons and Sadie Lyons, their mother, in the conduct of said business.

Case No. 88330 was dismissed in the district court upon the grounds that an action of that nature could be maintained only by the personal representative of Sadie Lyons, deceased. Appeal was taken to this court, resulting in an affirmance of the judgment entered in the district court. Lyons et al. v. Lyons et al., 182 Okla. 113, 76 P. 2d 892. That finally disposed of that case.

In cases No. 88170 and No. 88279, the trial court entered judgment for defendants on the pleadings and opening statement of counsel. Appeal was prosecuted to this court, where the judgments of the trial court were reversed and the causes remanded to the district court for further proceedings. Lyons et al. v. Lyons et al., 182 Okla. 108, 76 P. 2d 887, and Lyons et al. v. Lyons, 182 Okla. 112, 76 P. 2d 893. After said cases were remanded to the district court, it appears that S. D. Lyons and Mary J. Lyons affected a compromise and settlement with Allie Lyons Anthony, and she dropped out of the litigation. Said cases were thereafter prosecuted by plaintiff herein and Ruby Lyons.

While said cases were pending, Bruce & Rowan, attorneys, who had been counsel for Allie Lyons Anthony, filed suit against S. D. Lyons and Mary J. Lyons seeking to recover alleged contingent attorney fees by reason of the settlement of their client’s case without their consent. A number of other suits were brought involving title to some or all of the property standing in the name of S. D. Lyons or Mary J. Lyons. Plaintiff herein was not a party to any of said actions except the ones above referred to, No. 88170 and No. 88279. Oil and gas had been produced from some of the lots involved, and oil and gas royalty was being withheld by the producing companies.

In September, 1939, there were some ten or twelve cases pending involving in one way or another the property, in which it was claimed Sadie Lyons in her lifetime had an interest. In the meantime, the principal case, No. 88170, had been tried in the district court before Honorable Sam Hooker, district judge, and had been taken under advisement. About that time negotiations were had between the parties and their counsel looking to a settlement of all of said litigation, including the two cases in which plaintiff herein was interested. Pending such negotiations, Judge Hooker had been requested to withhold a decision in case No. 88170. It was thought that all the parties interested had agreed upon terms of settlement. Thereupon a contract in writing was prepared, having for its purpose the settlement and dismissal of all of said actions. In the meantime, the firm of Moss & Powell, attorneys, had been employed, or in some way had become associated with the firm of Bruce & Rowan, as counsel for Ruby Lyons and Effie Lyons Edwards. The contract covers 20 pages in the record and is too long to set out herein in full. It was prepared as a contract between Ruby Lyons, Effie Lyons Edwards, individually, and Bruce & Rowan and Moss & Powell, each co-partnerships in the practice of law, as parties of the first part, and S. D. Lyons and Mary J. Lyons, parties of the second part. It provided that wherever therein the term “individual first parties” appeared, reference was collectively to Ruby Lyons and Effie Lyons *266 Edwards; and that wherever the term “partnership first parties” appeared, reference was collectively to Bruce & Rowan and Moss & Powell, both copart-nerships; and that wherever the term “second parties”' appeared, reference was to S. D. Lyons and Mary J. Lyons, collectively.

After reciting at length the actions then pending, the contract recites:

“Whereas, all of the parties to this contract are now desirous of settling now and forever all of the claims of any kind and character whatsoever heretofore asserted, now being asserted, or that may be hereafter asserted, by either of the First Parties to this contract against the Second Parties hereto, or either of them . . .

With reference to the two actions in which plaintiff herein and Ruby Lyons were plaintiffs, the contract provided:

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Related

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Bluebook (online)
1944 OK 152, 149 P.2d 495, 194 Okla. 263, 1944 Okla. LEXIS 439, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/edwards-v-lyons-okla-1944.