Murski v. Kowalski

45 S.W.2d 747
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 23, 1931
DocketNo. 9627
StatusPublished

This text of 45 S.W.2d 747 (Murski v. Kowalski) 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
Murski v. Kowalski, 45 S.W.2d 747 (Tex. Ct. App. 1931).

Opinion

PLEASANTS, C. J.

This is a suit by appellants against the appellees to recover the amount due upon six promissory notes for the sum of $250 each executed by defendants Kasper Kowalski and Mary Kowalski on January 7, 1925, and payable to Casmier Murski in 12, 18, 14, 15, 16, and 17 years, respectively, from date, and to foreclose a deed of trust lien given by defendant Kowalski upon 30 acres of land in the Arabella Harrington League in Washington county to secure the payment of the notes.

The plaintiffs, who are the assignees of Casmier Murski, allege in their petition that the 30 acres of land upon which they seek to foreclose their lien, given to secure the payment of the notes sued on, was sold by Thomas E. Pelder and others to Kasper Kowalski by deed of date December 4, 1924; that Casmier Murski furnished to Kowalski $2,000 in cash with which to make the down payment on said property, and took 8 notes for $250 each, secured by a deed of trust lien on the same 3Q acres of property, in which instrument it was recited that the 8 notes covered $2,000 cash furnished to make the down payment recited in said deed, which was delivered at the time such lien was executed, and that the transaction of the conveyance and sale of said land was simultaneous with the furnishing of such money and the execution of such lien. That, at the time of the sale of the land, the purchasers also executed 24 [748]*748notes for $250 each, payable to Thomas É. Eelder, one of-the grantors in the deed, secured by a vendor’s lien on said 30 acres of land, and subsequently the said notes were assigned to W. E. Buchanan, one of the defendants in the suit, who later, on August 15, 1927, procured a reconveyance of the 30 acres of land by, Kasper Kowalski and-.wife to himself, in discharge of the vendor’s' lien notes he so held thereon; that, during the time Kowalski had the land, he sold to the defendant Edward Roesler 5¾<>0 of an acre, without procuring a release of the deed of trust lien on the' 30 acres, as to such 5¾00 of an acre so sold'therefrom, from the Murskis, who held the deed of trust lien thereon; that later the six notes herein sued on were assigned to the plaintiffs, Nick Murski and Steve Murski, who matured the same for nonpayment of interest by Kowalski. The plaintiffs’ petition alleges, in substance, that, by reason of the lien acquired by Murski on furnishing the down payment purchase money to Kowalski, simultaneously with the sale and conveyance of the land by the Felders, it was on a parity with the vendor’s lien held by the said Buchanan, as assignee, and that he had notice of such lien at the time he procured a reconvey-anee of the land in discharge of his lien notes, and he took such land subject thereto; that the said Roesler purchased his part of the 30 acres, subject to such lien, without a release thereof, and with full notice of the existence of the lien, the same being duly recorded. The plaintiffs also prayed in their petition that, in the event they be denied recovery as against the said Buchanan, foreclosing their lien on said land, the conveyance to him be set aside, and his lien be foreclosed jointly in the same suit, and the lands subjected to both liens on an equal rank, as against all of the defendants.

The defendant Roesler answered by general demurrer and general denial, and further specially pleaded, in substance, that he purchased 5¾00 of an acre of the 30 acres of land described in plaintiffs’ petition from the defendants Kowalski on January 26, 1925, and again on January 1, 1926, purchased from said defendants a tract of 2¾00 acres out of the 30-acre tract adjoining his tract of 5¾00 acres, and that he paid a valuable and fair price to Kasper Kowalski for the land so purchased, “and that the said Kasper Kowalski, used part of the purchase money to pay off on the $2000.00 indebtedness due by him to these plaintiffs; and that said plaintiffs received their proportional part out of. said lands that said lands bear to the whole; but should this defendant be mistaken as to this, then he says that he would only owe the plaintiffs so much as his lands bear to the whole acreage out of which his is a part; that is, that he would only be liable for the proportional part that the 8¼00 of an acre bears to the entire tract with reference to said indebtedness. That this defendant purchased said lands in good faith, procured a deed to the same, and that he made valuable and permanent improvements thereon, and has since the purchase thereof and is now using and claiming the same as his homestead, being the only property he owns and that the same is exempt to him as a homestead.

“Wherefore this defendant prays the Court that the cloud created by reason of the plaintiffs claiming an interest therein, be removed, and that he be discharged with all costs in this behalf by him incurred and expended.”

The defendant Buchanan answered by general demurrer, special exception, and general denial, and further specially pleaded, in substance, that on December 4, 1924, Thomas E. Felder sold and conveyed the 30 acres of land described in plaintiffs’ petition to Kas-per Kowalski for a consideration of $8,000, of which amount $2,000 was paid in cash, and for the balance of $6,000 Kasper Kowalski and wife, Mary Kowalski, executed their 24 vendor’s lien notes for $250 each, payable to Thomas-E. Felder in from 1 to. 24 years respectively, with interest thereon from January 1, 1925, at the rate of 8 per cent, per annum, and containing the usual stipulation for attorneys’ fees; that, to secure the payment of said notes, the following reservation of a vendor’s lien is retained in the deed from Thomas E. Felder to Kasper Kowalski.

“But it is expressly agreed ’and stipulated that the vendor’s lien is retained against the above described property, premises' and improvements until the above described notes and all interest thereon are fully paid according to their face, tenor, effect and reading, when this deed shall become absolute.”

That afterwards, on or about March 29, 1925, the said Thomas E. Felder, for a valuable consideration set out in said transfer, sold, transferred, and conveyed to this defendant the notes given him by Kasper Ko-walski in part payment for the land sued for, and in said transfer (which is recorded in book 82, page 185, to which refer) Thomas E. Felder also sold all the right, title, and interest owned by him in the land and notes. The transfer also states said notes are the first, and only lien on said land, which is the fact.

That; by reason of the sale and transfer by Thomas E. Felder of the vendor’s lien notes above described to this defendant', he became and is the legal owner of said notes, and he succeeded to and is now the owner of all the rights originally held by Thomas B. Felder in the land and notes, which he now here pleads and asserts. Neither this defendant nor Thomas E. Felder knew of the pretended deed of trust set up by the plaintiff, or had anything to do with it.

On or about August 15, 1927, the said Kasper Kowalski, being unable to pay the notes [749]*749given by him to Thomas E.

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Bluebook (online)
45 S.W.2d 747, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/murski-v-kowalski-texapp-1931.