Jacoby v. Wolff

247 P. 195, 198 Cal. 667, 1926 Cal. LEXIS 408
California Supreme Court·Decided June 1, 1926·No. Docket No. S.F. 11010.·Published·Cited by 28 cases

Opinion

LENNON, J.

Upon a rehearing and reconsideration of this case, we are satisfied with the opinion originally rendered and, therefore, adopt the same as follows:

“In this action to quiet title to a lot of land in the City of Oakland, plaintiff claimed title to said lot of land as the record owner thereof. Defendant claimed title to the same lot of land under a tax deed from the state. Plaintiff's complaint was drafted in the form ordinarily employed in actions of this character. The answer of the defendant, while admitting the plaintiff’s claim of title in fee simple to the land in suit, denied that the plaintiff ever was the owner of said land. In addition to his answer the defendant interposed a cross-complaint wherein he alleged that his claim of title to said land was founded upon a tax deed from the State of California executed to him by the tax collector of Alameda county, pursuant to a sale, at public auction, to the defendant, for the non-payment of state and county taxes assessed against said land which were then due, owing and delinquent. All of the allegations of the cross-complaint by stipulation of counsel for the respective parties were deemed denied.
“The plaintiff rested his case upon proof of the fact that the record title to the land in suit stood in his name. The defendant in response to the general issue, and the issues raised by the cross-complaint and answer thereto, offered and there was received in evidence a tax deed from the state, conveying the property in suit to him, and supplemented this with proof of the several and various proceedings which culminated in the execution of that deed.
“The trial of the case centered upon the issues relative to the sufficiency of the things done prior to the execution and delivery of the tax deed to the defendant. Upon the issues *671 as made a judgment for the plaintiff was rendered and entered based upon general findings to the effect that the plaintiff was at all of the times mentioned in the complaint the owner in fee of the land in suit, and that the defendant did not at any time own said land or have any interest therein. The findings of the trial court evidently proceeded upon the theory that the proceedings leading up to the tax sale and which culminated in the tax deed from the state to the defendant were irregular to the point of invalidity and that, as a consequence, the record title of the plaintiff to the land in suit should prevail.
“The facts of the case as revealed by the record before us are these: In the year 1916 a tax was levied on the land in suit. Joseph Levigne was the then owner of the land and it was assessed to him. Subsequent thereto, on June 26, 1917, the said tax having become 'delinquent, a sale of said land was made to the state for the non-payment of said tax. Thereafter, on June 2, 1922, pursuant to Section 3764, Political Code, the tax collector published for the first time a notice that the five-year period allowed by law for the redemption of said property sold to the state for delinquent taxes would expire on the 27th day of June, 1922. Said property remaining unredeemed and the sale thereof to the state being uncanceled at the expiration of said redemption period, the lot of land was sold to defendant Wolff on June 29th, 1922, pursuant to the provisions of Section 3771 of the Political Code. Subsequent thereto, on July 12, 1922, a deed was. executed and delivered to defendant by the tax collector of Alameda County on behalf of- the state pursuant to Section 3785b of the Political Code.
“Respondent contends, among other things, that the assessment in question is void because the description of the property as it appears on the assessment roll is defective to the point of being misleading. The description complained of appears on the assessment book in the following form, words and figures:

Taxpayer’s líame School Description of Property Lot Block

and post office District in Oakland City.

Address

Joseph I. Lavigne Oakland Havenseourt. Map filed 23 35

Formerly of record in the office --

Lockwood of the Bceorder of 3276

Alameda County

*672 “Upon this phase of the case we are in substantial accord with the reasoning and conclusion reached by Mr. Justice Sturteva'nt of the District Court of Appeal, in an opinion rendered by him when the case was heard and determined by that court in the first instance wherein he says:
“ ‘Turning to the map which was introduced in evidence we find at the top: ‘ ‘ Sheet No. 1. Havenscourt, Oakland, California.” The addition of the expression, “Sheet No. 1,” is no more than though it were marked simply “1” as indicating a page. There is no material variance, therefore, between the map introduced in evidence and the map designated in the purported assessment.
“ ‘ Commencing to examine the map, one. finds that it has on its face a delineation of blocks 15-35 inclusive. One also finds that each block has delineated on it various lots of various sizes. One also finds that block 35 is subdivided into lots 1-52 inclusive. One also finds that there is no 3276 lot, block or otherwise, and that said numeral does not in any place appear on the face of said map.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Jacoby v. Wolff, 247 P. 195, 198 Cal. 667, 1926 Cal. LEXIS 408 (Cal. 1926).

247 P. 195 (Jacoby v. Wolff) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Tahoe National Bank v. Phillips
480 P.2d 320 (California Supreme Court, 1971)
Santa Clara Properties Co. v. R. L. C., Inc.
217 Cal. App. 2d 840 (California Court of Appeal, 1963)
Pao Ch'en Lee v. GREGORICU
326 P.2d 135 (California Supreme Court, 1958)
Edwards v. City of Santa Paula
292 P.2d 31 (California Court of Appeal, 1956)
Marker v. Wendelken
288 P.2d 981 (California Court of Appeal, 1955)
Litchfield v. County of Marin
280 P.2d 117 (California Court of Appeal, 1955)
Lantz v. Stribling
279 P.2d 112 (California Court of Appeal, 1955)
Alma Investment Co. v. Krausse
256 P.2d 1017 (California Court of Appeal, 1953)
Elbert, Ltd. v. Nolan
196 P.2d 88 (California Court of Appeal, 1948)
Penaat v. Guasco
191 P.2d 564 (California Court of Appeal, 1948)
Penaat v. Terwilliger
147 P.2d 552 (California Supreme Court, 1944)
Smith v. Addiego
129 P.2d 953 (California Court of Appeal, 1942)
Ducey v. Dambacher
75 P.2d 98 (California Court of Appeal, 1938)
Trezona v. Tickell
49 P.2d 825 (California Supreme Court, 1935)
Kipp v. Billingham
20 P.2d 318 (California Supreme Court, 1933)
Risso v. Crooks
17 P.2d 1001 (California Supreme Court, 1933)
Andrews v. North Side Canal Co.
12 P.2d 263 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1932)
Tasker v. Nieto
291 P. 688 (California Court of Appeal, 1930)
E. E. McCalla Co. v. Sleeper
288 P. 146 (California Court of Appeal, 1930)
Sawyer v. Berkeley Securities Co.
279 P. 217 (California Court of Appeal, 1929)