Jones v. Citizens & Southern National Bank

204 S.E.2d 116, 231 Ga. 765, 1974 Ga. LEXIS 1228
Supreme Court of Georgia·Decided February 25, 1974·No. 28388·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinions

Ingram, Justice.

This appeal is from a summary judgment of the Superior Court of Laurens County concluding that appellant’s [766] claim for specific performance of an oral agreement to convey an interest in land is barred by one of several statutes of limitation.

The litigation began when appellee Citizens & Southern National Bank, as the executor of the last will and testament of Mr. R. L. Stephens, filed a complaint seeking direction with respect to the distribution of certain real estate and its net rental profits in the estate. The beneficiaries under the will were named defendants in the complaint for direction in addition to the administrator of Mrs. R. L. Stephens and her heirs at law. The trial court disallowed the claim of the deceased wife’s administrator and this is the issue for decision on appeal.

The facts contended by the administrator’s claim are these: Prior to the death of both Mr. Stephens and Mrs. Stephens, they owned a corporation for the operation of a mercantile business in Dublin. Mr. Stephens owned 60 percent of the outstanding stock and Mrs. Stephens owned 40 percent of the outstanding stock of the corporation. Mr. Stephens decided to dissolve the corporation and a resolution to accomplish the dissolution was adopted by the stockholders on December 31,1964. In January, 1965, during the dissolution process, Mr. Stephens met with his wife and her attorney at the home of a friend to discuss the status of the real estate that is now involved in the distribution of Mr. Stephens’ estate. At that meeting, the appellant contends, Mr. Stephens stated to Mrs. Stephens and her attorney that the real estate actually belonged to the corporation, in which Mrs. Stephens owned 40 percent of the outstanding stock, inasmuch as Mr. Stephens had agreed to deed the property to the corporation at the time it was organized but through neglect had not done so. Mr. Stephens orally agreed at the meeting with his wife and her attorney that if she would not file a lawsuit and allow him to proceed with the dissolution of the corporation he would deed to Mrs. Stephens an undivided 40-percent interest in the real estate as soon as the dissolution became final. Appellant contends that Mrs. Stephens accepted this proposal by Mr. Stephens and in his presence instructed her attorney not to take any legal proceedings against Mr. Stephens concerning the corporation.

Mr. Stephens died testate on July 18,1967, without having deeded the undivided 40-percent interest in the realty to Mrs. Stephens and he had record title to the realty at his death. Mrs. Stephens was adjudicated incompetent to manage her own affairs on August 24,1967, and, without ever being restored to competency, [767] she died intestate on September 24, 1969.

Mrs. Stephens’ administrator and her heirs demanded that the executor of Mr. Stephens’ will convey the undivided 40-percent interest in the realty to the heirs of Mrs. Stephens, but the executor declined to do so in view of claims made to the realty by beneficiaries under Mr. Stephens’ will. The superior court was then asked for distribution direction by the executor. Respdnsive pleadings were filed on May 10, 1972, by Mrs. Stephens’ administrator, seeking specific performance of the alleged oral agreement to convey an undivided 40-percent interest in the realty. The trial court found this claim was barred.

Essentially, the executor and beneficiaries under Mr. Stephens’ will urged the administrator’s claim was barred under one of three statutes of limitation and the trial court’s summary judgment finding against the appellant-administrator’s claim is based upon its determination that the claim is barred by one or more of these three statutes of limitation. These statutes will be considered in reviewing the correctness of the judgment appealed from in this case.

I.

Appellees argue that either Code Ann. § 22-1325 or § 22-1874 is applicable as a limitation on the prosecution of appellant’s claim. The latter Code section was in effect until the present Georgia Corporation Code became effective on April 1, 1969, and the new Code includes section 22-1325. The corporate dissolution involved in this case was accomplished under the prior law and would appear to be governed by its provisions. See Southern Land, Timber & Pulp Corp. v. U. S. A., 322 FSupp. 788 (N. D. Ga., 1970).

However, we do not regard either of these limitation statutes to be applicable as a bar to appellant’s claim. Both statutes deal with claims involved in corporate dissolution. Appellant’s present claim is not against the corporation or its assets. The claim originally urged by Mrs. Stephens concerning the land did involve the corporation and Mr. Stephens. However, that claim was relinquished by Mrs. Stephens in exchange for Mr. Stephens’ agreement to convey an undivided 40-percent interest to her in the realty to which he held title. Thus, the enforceable life of the latter claim arising out of the alleged oral agreement must be measured by a different limitation yardstick.

II.

According to the appellant, under the terms of the oral agreement between Mr. and Mrs. Stephens, she was to forbear filing a [768] lawsuit and allow Mr. Stephens to proceed with the corporate dissolution. Mr. Stephens, in turn, promised to convey the agreed interest in the land as soon as the dissolution of the corporation became final. Forbearance to prosecute a legal claim and the compromise of a doubtful right are both sufficient considerations to support a contract. Austell v. Rice, 5 Ga. 472 (3). The alleged oral agreement between Mr. and Mrs. Stephens was made in January, 1965. Under the law then existing (Code Ann. § 22-1874), corporate existence continued for a period of three years following dissolution. Thus the dissolution of the corporation did not become final until December 31, 1967. So the parties contemplated that Mr. Stephens’ obligation to convey the undivided 40-percent interest in the realty would arise on December 31, 1967, three years from the date of the corporate dissolution.

III.

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Jones v. Citizens & Southern National Bank, 204 S.E.2d 116, 231 Ga. 765, 1974 Ga. LEXIS 1228 (Ga. 1974).

204 S.E.2d 116 (Jones v. Citizens & Southern National Bank) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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Jones v. Citizens & Southern National Bank
204 S.E.2d 116 (Supreme Court of Georgia, 1974)