Florida Gas Exploration Co. v. Searcy

385 So. 2d 1293, 68 Oil & Gas Rep. 244, 1980 Miss. LEXIS 2002
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedMay 7, 1980
Docket51821
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 385 So. 2d 1293 (Florida Gas Exploration Co. v. Searcy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Florida Gas Exploration Co. v. Searcy, 385 So. 2d 1293, 68 Oil & Gas Rep. 244, 1980 Miss. LEXIS 2002 (Mich. 1980).

Opinion

385 So.2d 1293 (1980)

FLORIDA GAS EXPLORATION COMPANY et al.
v.
J.C. SEARCY et al.

No. 51821.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

May 7, 1980.
Rehearing Denied August 6, 1980.

Heidelberg, Woodliff & Franks, Luther M. Thompson, Kenneth I. Franks, Jackson, for appellants.

Craig Castle, Jackson, Jos. Dale, Prentiss, for appellees.

Before ROBERTSON, LEE and BOWLING, JJ.

LEE, Justice, for the Court:

J.C. Searcy, Jr., Searcy Enterprises, and Montego Petroleum filed suit in the Chancery Court of Jefferson Davis County against Tomlinson Interests, Inc., Watson Oil Corporation, Florida Gas Exploration Company, and First Mississippi Corporation seeking to reform a warranty deed executed by W.C. McLeod to Vester Thompson, appellants' predecessor in title, as to a one-fourth (1/4) mineral interest in an 80-acre tract of land in Jefferson Davis County, and to remove clouds on the title as to the said mineral interest. The trial court ordered the deed to be reformed to reflect that W.C. McLeod was vested with an *1294 undivided one-fourth (1/4) interest in said minerals, intended to be reserved in the deed instrument, and the defendants appeal.

The Federal Land Bank of New Orleans acquired title to the 80-acre tract involved, described as "the east half (1/2) of the northeast quarter of Section 10, Township 6 North, Range 17 West, Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi" on January 6, 1933 after foreclosing a deed of trust. At the time of the foreclosure, an undivided one-eighth (1/8) mineral interest had been reserved by J.J. Newman Lumber Company, a previous owner, in the northeast quarter (NE 1/4) of the northeast quarter (NE 1/4) of said tract. Subsequently, the Federal Land Bank conveyed the 80-acre tract to W.C. McLeod, reserving an undivided one-half (1/2) of the minerals. In 1952, McLeod conveyed the 80-acre tract to Vester Thompson by warranty deed, which instrument contained the following reservation: "1/4 interest in all minerals and oil is reserved to the grantor."

The deed was prepared by the Mayor of the City of Bassfield, who was unskilled in drawing such instruments, and it was recorded on October 21, 1952.

Vester Thompson executed a deed of trust in January, 1957, to the Federal Land Bank, covering the 80-acre tract of land. The deed of trust recited that the instrument was subject to a reservation by W.C. McLeod of one-fourth (1/4) of all the minerals, subject to a reservation by the Federal Land Bank of one-half (1/2) of all the minerals and was subject to a reservation by J.J. Newman Lumber Company of 1/8 of all the minerals in he NE 1/4 of the NE 1/4. That deed of trust was duly recorded and eventually was cancelled in March, 1972.

In May, 1957, one B.F. Banahan contacted Vester Thompson for the purpose of acquiring an oil, gas and mineral lease from him on the tract. Thompson told Banahan that he owned only an undivided one-fourth (1/4) mineral interest in the property. Banahan again checked the records, and then returned and told Thompson that he (Thompson) owned a one-half (1/2) interest in the minerals and that the McLeod heirs did not own any interest therein. Thompson executed a ten-year oil, gas and mineral lease on the land in question, purportedly covering an undivided one-half (1/2) mineral interest. Several days after the execution of the lease, Trudie Hawkins, a child and heir-at-law of W.C. McLeod, asked Thompson why the children of McLeod had not been approached about leasing the property and Thompson replied that he had been told by Banahan that he, Thompson, was the owner of a 1/2 interest in the minerals and that the McLeod heirs did not own any interest therein. Although there was some discussion about the matter involving the McLeod heirs, no action was taken to determine the ownership of the 1/4 mineral interest in question.

In 1971, Vester Thompson and his wife executed an oil, gas and mineral lease, covering the land, to R.H. Sims. The lease did not specify the particular interest owned by Thompson, and was subsequently assigned to the appellants, who claim through said instrument. Thompson executed a ratification and rental division order. In October, 1971 which provided for the payment of one dollar ($1.00) per acre per year under the lease, aggregating delayed rentals of forty dollars ($40.00) per year.

Appellee J.C. Searcy acquired oil, gas and mineral leases in 1974 from the heirs of W.C. McLeod on the 80-acre tract of land. Searcy and the appellees now claim all mineral interests owned by the heirs of McLeod.

Vester Thompson executed an instrument entitled "Agreement Amendment and Release" on June 3, 1974, for a consideration of six thousand dollars ($6,000), and conveyed an undivided one-fourth (1/4) mineral interest in the 80-acre tract to the heirs of McLeod. The instrument recited that it was executed to recognize the mutual mistake made in the September 18, 1952 deed from McLeod to Thompson, which did not properly reserve the undivided 1/4 interest in minerals, and it recited that when McLeod agreed to convey to Thompson the 80-acre tract, McLeod intended to reserve for himself an undivided 1/4 mineral interest in the *1295 property. The instrument recognized the reservation and was for the purpose of reforming the original deed to reflect that McLeod intended to reserve a 1/4 mineral interest over and above any interest previously reserved by the Federal Land Bank.

In June, 1974, the McLeod heirs executed an instrument styled "Conditional Assignment of Royalty Interest" in favor of appellee Searcy. The instrument conveyed the mineral interests acquired by them under the June 3, 1974 instrument executed by Thompson. It was executed in order to protect appellee Searcy in the event a competent court determined the leases he held on the property were not valid. Afterwards, in 1976, by three separate mineral deeds, the McLeod heirs conveyed all mineral interests owned by them in the land to one Cummings, who thereafter conveyed the same to appellee Searcy. He, in turn, conveyed to the other appellees. They are the successors in interest of the McLeod heirs and this action arose against the successors in interest of Thompson.

I.

Should this Court overrule and change the opinion in Searcy et al. v. Tomlinson Interests, Inc., et al., 358 So.2d 373 (Miss. 1978)?

When the bill of complaint was filed in this cause, a demurrer was interposed by the appellant and was sustained by the trial court. That bill of complaint was dismissed and the cause came to this Court under the above style and was reversed and remanded for trial on the merits. The principal question raised by the demurrer was a bar of the action by the statute of limitations.

The appellants argue that Searcy v. Tomlinson was palpably erroneous and that it should be overruled now, following Brewer v. Browning, 115 Miss. 358, 76 So. 267 (1917). The Brewer court stated:

"We think the rule of `the law of the case' is a good rule of practice, and should be followed, except in rare cases where the decision is manifestly and palpably erroneous and to follow it would result in grave injustice being done." 115 Miss. at 366, 76 So. at 270.

In Mississippi College v. May, 241 Miss. 359, 128 So.2d 557 (1961), the Court said:

"The doctrine of the law of the case is similar to that of former adjudication, relates entirely to questions of law, and is confined in its operation to subsequent proceedings in the case.

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Bluebook (online)
385 So. 2d 1293, 68 Oil & Gas Rep. 244, 1980 Miss. LEXIS 2002, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/florida-gas-exploration-co-v-searcy-miss-1980.