Koeber v. Somers

52 L.R.A. 512, 84 N.W. 991, 108 Wis. 497, 1901 Wisc. LEXIS 168
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 8, 1901
StatusPublished
Cited by40 cases

This text of 52 L.R.A. 512 (Koeber v. Somers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Koeber v. Somers, 52 L.R.A. 512, 84 N.W. 991, 108 Wis. 497, 1901 Wisc. LEXIS 168 (Wis. 1901).

Opinion

Dodge, J.

Two interesting and important questions are presented which go to the ultimate question of liability and obviate necessity for considering other assignments of error which reach only to the correctness of the trial and procedure. Those questions are: First, the existence of any covenant by defendant for plaintiff’s quiet enjoyment of the. demised premises; second, the right of defendant to prove,, by testimony of plaintiff’s former attorney, the giving to him of authority to make a settlement of plaintiff’s demand,, which lie did in fact make.

1. At common law, as is elementary, from the ordinary words of grant or demise in an instrument relating to real estate were implied certain covenants; among others, that the grantor had the right to convey, and that he would protect the grantee from lawful interference by others in enjoying the demised premises. This is called a covenant for quiet enjoyment. Eldred v. Leahy, 31 Wis. 546. Our statute, however (sec. 2204, Stats. 1898), reversed the rule of the common law, and provided that “ no covenant shall be implied in any conveyance of real estate.” This would seem final but for certain decisions in New York, whence we took the words above quoted, and but for the declaration very recently made by this court in Shaft v. Carey, 107 Wis. 273, that: “The statute (sec. 2204, Stats. 1898) to the effect that no covenant shall be implied in any conveyance of real estate, whether such conveyance contains special covenants or not, does not apply to leasehold estates. This is the rule now established in New York, from which our statute was taken, although a different conclusion was at first arrived at. New York v. Mabie, 13 N. Y. 151.”

On examining the authority there cited, we find it to relate to a lease for only three years, but to adopt the reason[501]*501ing of Chancellor Walworth in Tone v. Brace, 11 Paige, 566, which related to a lease for five years. In those cases it was held that the term “ conveyance ” did not include leases for years, repudiating the reasoning of an earlier case, where it was held that a lease for five years was a “conveyance of real estate,” because another statute of that state (sec. 36, ch. 3, p. 762, 1 R. S. N. Y. 1829) provided that the term “ real estate ” should include all interests in land except a leasehold for not exceeding three years. The subject has received no elaboration or discussion in later New York decisions. In some cases New York v. Mabie has been cited merely to support the proposition that implied covenants exist in leases for less than three years. Vernam v. Smith, 15 N. Y. 327; Edgerton v. Page, 20 N. Y. 281; Boreel v. Lawton, 90 N. Y. 293; Vann v. Rouse, 94 N. Y. 401. In others it is assumed that no lease for years, though exceeding three, is within the statute excluding such covenants. Graves v. Berdan, 26 N. Y. 498; Mack v. Patchin, 42 N. Y. 167; Grover, J., in Burr v. Stenton, 43 N. Y. 462, 464. While in still others, including the latest utterance we have found on the subject, the statute is, without argument, assumed to exclude implied covenants from leases longer than three years. Church, J., in Burr v. Stenton, supra; Coffin v. Brooklyn, 116 N. Y. 159.

Thus it is by no means clear that Tone v. Brace and New York v. Mabie correctly declare the law, even of New York, as to their statute. Whether they do or not, however, the views expressed in them are in direct conflict with sec. 2242 of our statutes, which clearly includes within thé term “ conveyance ” all leases for more than three years, and has been so treated whenever referred to. Eldred v. Leahy, 31 Wis. 546; Topping v. Parish, 96 Wis. 378, 382. It provides: “ The term ‘ conveyance,5 as used in this chapter, shall be construed to embrace every instrument in writing by which any estate or interest in real estate is created, aliened, mort[502]*502gaged or assigned or by which the title to any real estate may be affected in law or equity, except wills and leases for a term not exceeding three years.” New York had no such section in the chapter containing the original of our sec. 2204 (sec. 140, ch. 1, p. 738, 1 R. S. N. Y. 1829). True, there existed a section in the same words, but in another chapter, devoted to the recording of conveyances (sec. 38, ch. 3, p. 762, 1 R. S. N. Y. 1829); but it was never referred to as affecting the interpretation of sec. 140, ch. 1. It is, therefore, apparent that decisions of New York courts are not controlling as to the scope of sec. 2204, so far, at least, as they conflict with the interpretation expressly and without ambiguity given it by the legislature in sec. 2242.

Considering our own statute, then, as an original proposition, there is no ambiguity. The words and the intent of the legislature are clear to the effect that no covenant shall be implied in any conveyance of real estate, and that a lease for more than three years is such a conveyance. This court cannot properly change or ignore that legislation. Our declaration in Shaft v. Carey, 107 Wis. 273, above quoted, if adhered to, would have that effect, and we hasten to avail ourselves of this early opportunity to withdraw it; the more readily because in the few months since it was uttered it cannot have become so established as a rule of property as to affect in very considerable degree vested rights; certainly not the rights of the parties now under consideration, for they had become fully settled — nay, had been tried in the superior court — before the decision of Shaft v. Carey. The result reached in that case did not necessarily depend on the rule of law so announced, for that was not an action to recover for breach of any implied covenant, but was a suit to enjoin one holding under and in the right of the lessor from doing acts invasive of rights granted by the lease itself. The duty of the lessor to refrain from voluntarily and unnecessarily interfering with [503]*503the possession he himself has granted stands on very different ground from his liability to respond in damages when that possession is disturbed by another under a superior title. The rights of the lessee were not predicated upon implied covenant, nor did the briefs of counsel discuss the subject, nor did the court have its attention called to sec. 2242 as affecting sec. 2204.

We hold, therefore, that in the lease from defendant to plaintiff there was no implied covenant to defend the latter from interruption of his use of a portion of the premises by the acts of Lange upon his adjoining premises, under his superior title, and that plaintiff cannot maintain his action for damages founded upon breach of such covenant. The refusal of instructions requested by defendant substantially to this effect was error necessitating reversal.

2. The proposition advanced by respondent and adopted by the trial court, that one, after fully authorizing his attorney, as his agent, to enter into contract with a third party, and after such authority has been executed and relied on, may effectively nullify his own and his duly authorized agent’s act by closing the attorney’s mouth as to the giving of such authority, is most startling. A perilous facility of fraud and wrong, both upon the attorney and the third party, would result. The attorney who, on his client’s authority, contracts in his behalf, pledges his reputation and integrity that he binds his client.

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Bluebook (online)
52 L.R.A. 512, 84 N.W. 991, 108 Wis. 497, 1901 Wisc. LEXIS 168, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/koeber-v-somers-wis-1901.