Fleming v. Georgia Railroad Bank

48 S.E. 420, 120 Ga. 1023, 1904 Ga. LEXIS 784
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedAugust 12, 1904
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 48 S.E. 420 (Fleming v. Georgia Railroad Bank) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fleming v. Georgia Railroad Bank, 48 S.E. 420, 120 Ga. 1023, 1904 Ga. LEXIS 784 (Ga. 1904).

Opinion

Evans, J.

Frank E. Fleming filed, his petition against the Georgia Railroad Bank, alleging, substantially : On August 26, 1901, Antoine P. Carr purchased from John W. Dickey, for the sum of $3,030, a certain lot of land in the city of Augusta (described by metes and bounds). The deed to this lot was, at the direction of Carr, made to the defendant bank in order to secure a promised loan by it to Carr of $1,000. Dickey had no negotiations at all with the bank concerning such sale or conveyance. On August 31, 1901, the Georgia Railroad Bank fulfilled its promise and made the loan to Carr, accepting delivery of the deed as security therefor; but the deed was not recorded until February 18,1903. On November 25, 1901, Carr paid off the balance of the loan he [1024]*1024procured from the defendant bank, and made and delivered to it a note for $2,200. On the same day, the bank took from Carr a sealed instrument, duly executed, reciting the different steps of the transaction up to that date, and reciting that “ the agreement between the bank and myself is that the said deed described above shall be held as security until this note of ($2,200) two thousand two hundred dollars, and all renewals thereof and interest on the same, is fully paid.” This instrument has never been recorded. On January 20, 1902, Carr conveyed to the Commercial Bank of Augusta, for the sum of $1,950, the lot of land above referred to, reciting in his conveyance that it was made subject to a deed to the Georgia -Railroad Bank to secure a loan of $2,000. This deed was recorded May 22, 1902. The Commercial Bank of Augusta acquired its transfer of the property from Carr in good faith and without notice of any lieu or claim thereon, except the indebtedness of $2,000 just mentioned. On March 31, 1903, the Commercial Bank sold - and conveyed to Frank E. Fleming, the plaintiff, all its right, title and interest in and to said lot. On May 1, 1903, Fleming tendered to the Georgia Railroad Bank all the balance of principal, interest, and other rightful charges against said lot accruing under the note of November 25, 1901, for $2,200 and under the sealed instrument given to that bank on that day, at the same time demanding a conveyance to himself of the interest, in the property held by the Georgia Railroad Bank; but this tender was rejected and his demand refused. That bank demands,-as a condition precedent to a conveyance of its interest in the land, the payment not only of the amount tendered, but. also payment of a balance due to the bank by Carr on a note for $2,250; dated January 14, 1902. On January 20, 1902, the date of the conveyance from Carr to the Commercial Bank, neither that bank nor the plaintiff had any knowledge or notice of any kind of Carr’s note to the Georgia Railroad Bank for $2,250, dated January 14, 1902. Taxes of the City of Augusta for the year 1902 were assessed on real property in the names of those who owned it or were supposed to own it on January 1, 1902, and the Georgia Railroad Bank did not have the land assessed in its name, but the same was assessed in the name of Antoine P. Carr. The plaintiff stated in his petition that he made a continuing tender of the amounts due on the [1025]*1025note and under the sealed instrument of November 25, 1901, and prayed that the defendant bank be required to accept such tender and make to him a conveyance of all its interest in the land. Attached as exhibits to the petition were copies of the sealed instrument given to the Georgia Eailroad Bank by Carr on November 25, 1901, the last note which he gave to it, dated January 14, 1902, and the deed from Carr to the Commercial Bank. By way of an amendment to his petition, the plaintiff further alleged that the “lot was unimproved and was never in the possession of the Georgia Eailroad Bank, except as said bank held possession under said deed, and was never in the actual possession of said Carr.”

The defendant demurred to the petition on the grounds, that it was without equity and set forth no cause of action; that plaintiff acquired a mere equity in the land, which was subject to any counter-claim which defendant might have against plaintiff’s assignor, A. P. Carr;' and that defendant had no notice of any transfer by A. P. Carr to plaintiff of his equity in the premises, and Vas justified in dealing with Carr as the owner of the equity. The demurrer was sustained, and the plaintiff excepts to the judgment sustaining the demurrer.

The right of the plaintiff, Fleming, to require the Georgia Eailroad Bank to execute to him a conveyance of all its 'right, title, and interest in the lot of land, upon payment of the amount due on the $2,200 note, depends upon whether Carr could have maintained the same action which Fleming is prosecuting. Carr’s deed to the Commercial Bank conveyed only his equity of redemption; and Fleming, under his deed from the Commercial Bank, acquired only such title as that bank had. It is therefore pertinent to inquire into Carr’s right to compel a conveyance from the Georgia Eailroad Bank, under the facts alleged in the petition. When Carr bought the land from Dickey, he procured the Georgia Eailroad Bank to advance him $1,000, and agreed that the bank should take the title to the land to secure this loan. That the deed was taken as security for this loan appears conclusively from recitals in the instrument under seal given to the bank by Carr on November 25, 1901, and from the fact that the bank never went into possession of the land nor returned the same for taxes. The writing just mentioned further recited, that [1026]*1026Carr had, oil that date, borrowed from the bank $2,200, which amount was to become due thirty days after date, and that the agreement between him and the bank was that this deed should be held as security until a note for $2,200, given the bank by Carr, and all renewals thereof and interest on same, should be fully paid. Carr alone signed this instrument, but the bank, by accepting it, assented to its terms. Upon the conclusion of this transaction, Carr’s indebtedness was $2,200, and the bank’s security was the land, the title to which was made to it by Dickey. If no subsequent transaction had occurred between Carr and the bank, clearly, on the payment of the $2,200 debt, he would have been entitled to a conveyance of the land from the bank. Carr did, it appears, pay $200 on this indebtedness. While his interest in the land was only the equity of redemption, upon payment of the debt secured by the deed Carr or his assignee could maintain a proceeding to compel a conveyance from the bank. Upon payment of the debt, a resulting trust would have arisen; and the bank, holding the naked legal title with no beneficial interest in the land, would be deemed the trustee of Carr. But there was a subsequent transaction between Carr and the bank. He procured an additional loan of $2,250, and gave the bank his note for this amount. This last note recited that the borrower had deposited with the bank “ Bill Lading Five Cars Corn,” as collateral security for the payment of this and any other indebtedness.

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Bluebook (online)
48 S.E. 420, 120 Ga. 1023, 1904 Ga. LEXIS 784, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fleming-v-georgia-railroad-bank-ga-1904.