Mark J. Mueller v. James H. Davis, Individually, James H. Davis D/B/A J.D. Minerals, and JDMI, LLC

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas·Decided June 16, 2015·No. 06-14-00100-CV·Published

Opinion

ACCEPTED 06-14-00100-CV SIXTH COURT OF APPEALS TEXARKANA, TEXAS 6/16/2015 10:25:46 AM DEBBIE AUTREY CLERK

No. 06-14-00100-CV

IN THE SIXTH COURT OF APPEALS June 16, 2015 AT TEXARKANA

MARK J. MUELLER, Appellant

V.

JAMES H. DAVIS, Individually, and JAMES H. DAVIS D/B/A J. D. MINERALS, and JDMI, LLC., Appellee

Appealed from the 71st District Court of Harrison County, Texas

APPELLANT’S BRIEF

BOB WHITEHURST State Bar No. 21358100 whitehurstlawfirm@yahoo.com WHITEHURST & WHITEHURST 5380 Old Bullard Road, Suite 600-363 Tyler, Texas 75703 (903) 593-5588 (214) 853-9382 (facsimile)

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT

APPELLANT REQUESTS ORAL ARGUMENT

IDENTITY OF PARTIES AND COUNSEL

In accordance with Rule 38.1(a) of the TEXAS RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE, Appellant, Mark J. Mueller provides the following list of all parties, and the names and addresses of all counsel:

Appellant/Plaintiff: Mark J. Mueller

Counsel for Appellant: Bob Whitehurst State Bar I.D. # 21358100 Whitehurst & Whitehurst 5380 Old Bullard Road, Suite 600-363 Tyler, Texas 75703 Telephone: (903) 593-5588 Facsimile: (903) 297-1992

Appellee/Defendant: James H. Davis, Individually, and James H.

Davis d/b/a J.D. Mineral and JDMI, LLC.

Counsel for Appellee: Douglas D. McLallen State Bar I.D. # 00788025 1001 Third Street, Ste. 1 Corpus Christi, Texas 78404 Telephone: (361) 884-4981 Facsimile: (361) 884-1286

ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Identity of Parties and Counsel................................................................................... ii

Table of Contents........................................................................................................ iii

Index of Authorities.................................................................................................... vi

Statement of the Case................................................................................................. x

Issues Presented.......................................................................................................... 7

Issue No. 1: The conveyances are void as a matter of law because the property descriptions are not legally sufficient pursuant to the requirements of the Statute of Frauds.

Issue No. 2: It was improper to hold that the Mother Hubbard or “Catch- all“ clause could convey substantial property interest.

Issue No. 3: A material question of fact remains as to what property was conveyed.

Issue No. 4: A material question fact remains due to the ambiguity surrounding the discord over what property was conveyed in the conveyance..

Issue No. 5: Material questions of fact concerning the possession and control of the mineral interests exist based upon the discrepancies between the judicially admitted documents provided by Appellee and the subsequently sworn Affidavit by Appellee.

Issue No. 6: Questions of material fact concerning the possession and control of the mineral interests exist based upon the discrepancies between the official Harrison County documents and the subsequently sworn Affidavit by Appellee.

Issue No. 7: A material question of fact remains due to the cumulative nature of Appellee’s prior bad acts.

Statement of Facts...................................................................................................... 1

Summary of the Argument......................................................................................... 8

iii

Argument and Authorities.......................................................................................... 10

1. The conveyances are void as a matter of law because the property descriptions are not legally sufficient pursuant to the requirements of the Statute of Frauds....................................................................................... 10

2. It was improper to hold that the Mother Hubbard or “Catch-all” clause could convey substantial property interest.......................................... 12

3. A material question of fact remains as to what property was conveyed......................................................................................................... 16

4. A material question fact remains due to the ambiguity surrounding the discord over what property was conveyed in the lease............................. 18

5. Material questions of fact concerning the possession and control of the mineral interests exists based upon the discrepancies between the judicially admitted documents provided by Appellee and the subsequently sworn Affidavit by Appellee.................................................... 19

6. Material questions of fact concerning the possession and control of the mineral interests exist based upon the discrepancies between the official Harrison County documents and the subsequently sworn Affidavit by Appellee..................................................................................... 23

7. A material question of fact remains due to the cumulative nature of Appellee’s prior bad acts........................................................................... 24

Conclusion.................................................................................................................. 33

Prayer.......................................................................................................................... 33

Certificate of Compliance........................................................................................... 33

Certificate of Service.................................................................................................. 34

Appendix.................................................................................................................... 35

Deed from Ms. Cope/Mitchell to Appellee................................................................ Tab A

Deed from James H. Mills to Appellee...................................................................... Tab B

iv

Answers to Admissions by Appellee........................................................................... Tab C

Letter to James H. Mills from Appellee about one year term royalty........................ Tab D

Deed from Ms. Cope/Mitchell to Charles B. Horne................................................... Tab E

Deed from Charles B. Horne to Appellant................................................................. Tab F

Letter from Appellee to Ms. Cope/Mitchell withdraw offer...................................... Tab G

Proposal by Appellee to Ms. Cope/Mitchell to convey minerals.............................. Tab H

Letter from Appellee to James H. Mills dated November 26, 2007.......................... Tab I

Wagner & Brown letter.............................................................................................. Tab J

Permission from Ms. Cope/Mitchell to Appellee in 2008......................................... Tab K

Letter to Ms. Cope/Mitchell from Appellee withdrawing offer................................. Tab L

Letter from Appellee claiming 100% of all interest................................................... Tab M

Letter from Wagner & Brown to parties keeping proceeds in suspense.................... Tab N

Deed from James H. Mills to Appellant..................................................................... Tab O

Deed from Charles B. Horne to Appellant................................................................. Tab P

Deed from Ms. Cope/Mitchell to Appellant............................................................... Tab Q

Memo from Appellee that Ms. Cope/Mitchell had sold all her interest..................... Tab R

County Clerk Records regarding conveyance from Cope and Mills.......................... Tab S

Tax documents............................................................................................................ Tab T

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

Mark J. Mueller v. James H. Davis, Individually, James H. Davis D/B/A J.D. Minerals, and JDMI, LLC, (Tex. 2015).

Mark J. Mueller v. James H. Davis, Individually, James H. Davis D/B/A J.D. Minerals, and JDMI, LLC (Mark J. Mueller v. James H. Davis, Individually, James H. Davis D/B/A J.D. Minerals, and JDMI, LLC) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

AIC MANAGEMENT v. Crews
246 S.W.3d 640 (Texas Supreme Court, 2008)
Grant v. Southwestern Electric Power Co.
20 S.W.3d 764 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2000)
Blanche v. First Nationwide Mortgage Corp.
74 S.W.3d 444 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2002)
Dixon v. Amoco Production, Co.
150 S.W.3d 191 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2004)
Smith v. Allison
301 S.W.2d 608 (Texas Supreme Court, 1956)
Denton v. Big Spring Hospital Corp.
998 S.W.2d 294 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1999)
Durbin v. Dal-Briar Corp.
871 S.W.2d 263 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1994)
Peacock v. Schroeder
846 S.W.2d 905 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1993)
Stekoll Petroleum Co. v. Hamilton
255 S.W.2d 187 (Texas Supreme Court, 1953)
Pick v. Bartel
659 S.W.2d 636 (Texas Supreme Court, 1983)
Republic National Bank of Dallas v. Stetson
390 S.W.2d 257 (Texas Supreme Court, 1965)
Jones v. Kelley
614 S.W.2d 95 (Texas Supreme Court, 1981)
El Chico Corp. v. Poole
732 S.W.2d 306 (Texas Supreme Court, 1987)
Bosque Asset Corp. v. Greenberg
19 S.W.3d 514 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2000)
Moore v. K Mart Corp.
981 S.W.2d 266 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1998)
Columbia Gas Transmission Corp. v. New Ulm Gas, Ltd.
940 S.W.2d 587 (Texas Supreme Court, 1996)
Mediacomp, Inc. v. Capital Cities Communication, Inc.
698 S.W.2d 207 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1985)
Nixon v. Mr. Property Management Co.
690 S.W.2d 546 (Texas Supreme Court, 1985)
Fears v. Texas Bank
247 S.W.3d 729 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2008)