Eugene v. Ventress

209 So. 2d 341, 1968 La. App. LEXIS 5431
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 8, 1968
DocketNo. 2991
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 209 So. 2d 341 (Eugene v. Ventress) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Eugene v. Ventress, 209 So. 2d 341, 1968 La. App. LEXIS 5431 (La. Ct. App. 1968).

Opinion

CHASEZ, Judge.

Plaintiffs, Edward Eugene, Pauline Eugene, wife of George Anderson, Raniel Smith, Hurley Smith, Jr., Mercedes Smith, wife of John Curry, Marietta Smith, wife of Albert Price, Doris Smith, Dolores Vincent, wife of Alfred Ripoll, Miriam Vincent, wife of Madlee Griffith, William Hardin, Cora Hardin, wife of Robert Ro-vairs, Angelina Hardin, wife of Alexander Lee, Amy Hardin, Marie Eugene, wife of Frank Emilien, Louise Eugene, wife of Victor Emilien, alleging ownership of an undivided three-quarters interest in property located in the City of New Orleans, brought this action for a partition by Imitation. Petitioners claimed title as heirs of Hypolite Paul or Paul Hypolite. They named as defendants Ruth Evelyn Ventress and Rose Garrett Thomas because, they averred, they were unable to determine which defendant was the owner of the remaining undivided one-quarter interest in the property.

Defendant Ruth Evelyn Ventress denied the plaintiffs’ right to a partition because, she averred, she was the owner of the entire tract. Defendant stated she bought the property from Chris R. Valley on July 11, 1951 and any defects in her title were cured by LSA-R.S. 33:2872, an act to ratify, quiet and confirm all municipal tax sales by the City of New Orleans. (Defendant’s vendor acquired title at a City' of New Orleans tax sale.) Defendant Ven-tress also filed an exception of no cause of action urging petitioners had failed to show they were co-owners with defendant. The exception was overruled.

Plaintiffs then filed an exception of res judicata and/or equitable estoppel to the answer of Ruth Ventress, based on litiga[343]*343tion initiated by Ruth Ventress in 1954 in which she attempted to quiet title to the same propery plaintiffs now desire to have partitioned. In the earlier suit, all plaintiffs herein were joined as defendants, and at that time their plea of no cause of action to the Ventress petition was maintained because the Court concluded Ruth Ventress did not own the property. This exception was also overruled by the trial court.

Defendant Rose Garrett Thomas made no appearance and judgment was rendered against her by default.

The matter was submitted for adjudication upon a stipulation of facts. The trial court rendered judgment recognizing Ruth Evelyn Ventress as the sole owner of the property and dismissed plaintiffs’ suit at their costs. Plaintiffs have appealed, urging before this Court that the trial judge improperly overruled the plea of res judi-cata or equitable estoppel.

The undisputed facts are these:

On November 10, 1866 Hypolite Paul bought the property.
On April 19, 1934 the property was sold to the City of New Orleans for non-payment of taxes for the year 1930.
On November 29, 1949, property was sold by the City of New Orleans to Chris Valley.
On July 11, 1951, the property was sold by Chris Valley to Ruth Evelyn Ventress.
On June 7, 1954 Ruth Ventress filed suit to quiet title to the property under LSA-R.S. 47:2228.1, as amended by Act 277 of 1952 and named as defendants the heirs of the tax debtor Hypolite Paul, as she was required to do under the statute authorizing the action to quiet title. (Ventress v. Thomas)
On December 10, 1956, the Court of Appeal for the Parish of Orleans, overruled the trial court and reversed its original decree confirming title in Ruth Ventress. The decree on rehearing maintained the exception of no cause of action urged by the Hypolite Paul heirs on the finding that the title of Ruth Ven-tress was non-existent because her vend- or acquired at a tax sale that was “void ab initio”. 91 So.2d 614. On March 1, 1957, the Supreme Court refused writs assigning as its reason: “Judgment is correct.”
On April 25, 1960, the Supreme Court, in the case of Nero v. Bergin, 239 La. 793, 120 So.2d 78 stated the Court of Appeal decision in Ventress v. Thomas was incorrect and the Supreme Court erred when it refused writs in that case.
Later in 1960, the Louisiana legislature amended LSA-R.S. 33:2872 to “ratify, quiet and confirm as legal and valid all tax sales made by the City of New Orleans under Act 112 of 1938.” (The 1956 decision in Ventress v. Thomas held that the tax sale from the City to Valley (Ventress’ vendor) was a nullity because the City had sold under the wrong statute.)
On October 15, 1965, heirs of Hypo-lite Paul obtained a judgment in a mandamus proceeding ordering the City of New Orleans to execute Act of Redemption in favor of Hypolite Paul. Certificate of redemption was registered in the conveyance office of Orleans Parish on November 2, 1965.
On January 13, 1966, plaintiffs were recognized as owners of an undivided three-quarters interest in the property by a judgment of possession in Proceedings No. 293-390 of the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans.
On February 1, 1966 this suit was filed.

Plaintiffs’ appeal rests solely on the proposition that the judgment rendered in Ven-tress v. Thomas in 1956 forms a valid basis for their plea of res judicata because the case held that Ruth Ventress had no title to the property now sought to be partitioned. And whether the result of that case was [344]*344right or wrong, the judgment has the effect of estopping defendant Ventress from reasserting ownership.

The essential elements of res judicata are outlined in Civil Code Article 2286, which provides:

“The authority of the thing adjudged takes place only with respect to what was the object of the judgment. The thing demanded must be the same; the demand must be founded on the same cause of action; the demand must be between the same parties, and formed by them against each other in the same quality.”

Civil Code Article 3556(31) defines the “thing adjudged” as follows:

“Thing adjudged is said of that which has been decided by a final judgment, from which there can be no appeal, either because the appeal did not lie, or because the time fixed by law for appealing is elapsed, or because it has been confirmed on the appeal.”
Civil Code Article 2285 provides in part:
“Legal presumption is that which is attached by a special law, to certain acts or to certain facts; such are:
:jt # * * * *
“3. The authority which the law attributes to the thing adjudged.”

Thus a judgment in a former suit bars, as res judicata, a second action wherein the thing demanded is the same, the demand is founded on the same cause of action and the demand is between the same parties and formed by them against each other in the same quality. See Quinette v. Delhommer, La.App., 165 So.2d 900, at 903.

Applying these principles to the instant facts, we conclude the plea of res judicata urged by plaintiffs was improperly overruled.

In 1954 Ruth Ventress filed suit under Act 277 of 1952 to confirm a title to property that her vendor, Chris Valley, had acquired at a tax sale. The act contained certain requirements the property owner must comply with in bringing the action.

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Related

Eugene v. Ventress
220 So. 2d 94 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1969)

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Bluebook (online)
209 So. 2d 341, 1968 La. App. LEXIS 5431, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/eugene-v-ventress-lactapp-1968.