Harris v. Mayfield

244 S.W. 857, 1922 Tex. App. LEXIS 1337
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 14, 1922
DocketNo. 2628.
StatusPublished

This text of 244 S.W. 857 (Harris v. Mayfield) 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
Harris v. Mayfield, 244 S.W. 857, 1922 Tex. App. LEXIS 1337 (Tex. Ct. App. 1922).

Opinion

HODGES, J.

The property involved in this litigation is a lot situated in the city of Marshall, Tex., which was'originally owned and occupied by William Harris and bis wife, Chlora. William died in 1908, while occupying the property as the family homestead. His wife continued to reside on the premises ‘ till some time in 1910. She then, because of age and ill health, moved -to the home of her sister, Mollie Mayfield, and died about one year later. Harris and wife had three children: James, Henry _ and Elizabeth. James and Henry are still living and are parties to this suit. The daughter, Elizabeth, married Williams, and died some time in 1906 or 1907. It appears indirectly that Williams was dead before any of the conditions arose upon which this controversy is based. Elizabeth was survived one day by ber only child, Leola. In 1901, while William and Chlora Harris were living on the property, it was sold for taxes at the suit of the city of Marshall, and was bought in at the execution sale by A. T. Foster for the sum of $16.50. In 1905 Foster, for a valuable consideration, conveyed to James Harris and his sister, Elizabeth Williams. William and Chlora Harris, however, continued in the actual occupancy of the property as before. While James Harris and his wife; appellants in this suit, also resided on the premises at different times, it does not appear that any controversy arose between any of tbe parties and William Harris as to the right of occupancy, or the title to the property. William Harris continued to pay taxes thereafter to the date of his death, and his wife paid some of the taxes after his death. In April, 1916, Chlora Harris conveyed to her sister, Mollie Mayfield, the eastern half of the lot, reserving to herself a life estate. In July, 1917,' after the death of Chlora Harris, Mollie Mayfield and Henry Harris filed a suit for a partition of the property, mating James Harris, the only other surviving child, a party defendant. The petition for partition alleged that Mollie Mayfield owned a one-half interest, and that James and Henry each owned an undivided ono-fourth interest. James was cited, but made no appearance in the suit. A judgment was thereafter rendered for a partition in accordance with the prayer of the plaintiffs. The property not being susceptible of division, it was sold under a decree of the court, and was bought in by F. W. Patillo, for Henry Harris, to whom a deed was executed.

This suit was instituted by Lillie Harris joined by her husband, James Harris, to set aside to partition decree and the same thereunder and to recover the property. The claim of title is based upon the conveyance from Foster to James Harris and his sister Elizabeth, and also upon adverse possession of more than ten years. The suit is founded upon the assumption that the tax sale divested William Harris and his wife ,of all title to the property and passed it to Foster,’ who later conveyed it to James Harris and his sister Elizabeth Williams; that when Elizabeth Williams died her interest passed by inheritance to her daughter Leola, and from Leola to a paternal grandfather and uncle and her maternal grandmother, Chlora Harris. It appears that Lillie Harris, after the partition suit above referred to, acquired by purchase the interest of the paternal grandfather and uncle. The contention is that these heirs of Leola Williams were not parties to the partition suit, and for that reason the decree rendered was a nullity. In a trial before tbe court a judgment was rendered for the. defendants.

The case is brought here upon findings of, the trial court accompanied by an agreement covering all of the material facts. The court finds that the property was originally acquired by William and Cblora Harris, who occupied it as a family homestead as previously stated; that James Harris and his wife Lillie had never held such possession of the property as would give them a title by limitation; that the property was sold at a tax sale in 1901 to Foster, and afterwards conveyed by him to James Harris and Elizabeth Williams. He finds, however, that the evidence does not show that all of the prerequisites required by law for a valid tax sale had been complied with in the sale of the property. Touching *859 the conditions Tinder which the property was sold ior taxes, he finds specifically, in substance, as follows: A judgment for taxes was rendered in the district court of Harrison county in March, 1901, in favor of the city of Marshall against William Harris. The judgment and cost of suit amounted- to $24.20. In May following, an order of sale was issued upon that judgment by the clerk of the district court, and placed in the hands of the sheriff. No return of the writ is recorded in the execution docket. That docket shows only that the order of sale was issued. All the original papers of the suit, including the order of sale, were lost. In July, 1901, the land was sold under the order of sale to Foster for $29.69, to whom the sheriff made a deed conveying the property, and this deed was filed for record during the same month and properly recorded. There was no evidence that the property had been rendered or assessed for taxes or that any taxes were levied against it during lire years set forth in the deed, and no evidence as to whether or not the amount of taxes assessed were correct, except as is shown by the judgment and the entries on the execution docket and by the deed executed by the sheriff to Foster. In Juno of 1905, Foster sold and conveyed the land, for a consideration of $75, to Elizabeth Williams and James Harris. At the date of This deed James Hands and Elizabeth Williams were living on the place with their father, William Harris. Elizabeth continued to live there until she died, about the year 1906 or 1907. Chlora had been absent living in Dallas and Galveston for a year or more, and returned to the property about 10 days before the death of her daughter, Elizabeth Williams. Upon those findings the court concluded as a matter of law that the sheriff’s deed 'to Foster conveyed no title. He sustained the validity of the partition decree and the rights of the parties thereunder.

[1] The judgment of the trial court is assailed upon the ground that he erred in holding the tax judgment and sale void. It would, be diflicult to affirm this judgment upon the ground that the tax sale was void. The record shows that a suit for delinquent taxes had been filed by the city of Marshall, and a judgment apparently valid was rendered against the owner, William Harris, for taxes due the city; that an order of sale was thereafter issued, the property sold by virtue of that writ, and a deed made by the sheriff to Foster. That judgment must be regarded in this proceeding as conclusive upon the question of regularity of the assessments and all issues which the court was required to inquire into in that trial. Brown v. Bonougli, (Tex. Sup.) 232 S. W. 490; Kenson v. Gage et al., 34 Tex. Civ. App. 547, 79 S. W. 605. The judgment, the order of sale, and the tax deed from the sheriff were sufficient muni-ments of title, unless attacked for fraud, to support the claim of Foster’s grantees. Lumpkin v. Wood (Tex. Civ. App.) 135 S. W. 1139; Young v. Jackson, 50 Tex. Civ. App. 351, 110 S. W. 74.

[2] But assuming that the tax sale was valid, and that James Harris and his sister, Elizabeth Williams, acquired a good title from Foster, who purchased at the tax sale, it does not follow that the judgment should be reversed. The appellees pleaded specially a title by limitation resulting from adverse possession of more than ten years. In the agreed statement appears the following:'

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Related

Kenson v. Gage
79 S.W. 605 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1904)
Brown v. Bonougli
232 S.W. 490 (Texas Supreme Court, 1921)
Lumpkin v. Woods
135 S.W. 1139 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1911)
Young v. Jackson
110 S.W. 74 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1908)

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Bluebook (online)
244 S.W. 857, 1922 Tex. App. LEXIS 1337, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/harris-v-mayfield-texapp-1922.