Neblett v. Placid Oil Company

257 So. 2d 167
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 3, 1972
Docket3494
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 257 So. 2d 167 (Neblett v. Placid Oil Company) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Neblett v. Placid Oil Company, 257 So. 2d 167 (La. Ct. App. 1972).

Opinion

257 So.2d 167 (1971)

Robert B. NEBLETT, Jr., Plaintiff and Appellant,
v.
PLACID OIL COMPANY et al., Defendants and Appellees.

No. 3494.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

August 20, 1971.
On Rehearing January 21, 1972.
Writ Refused March 3, 1972.

*169 Greene, Ayres & Mayo by Robert K. Mayo, Shreveport, and Neblett, Fuhrer & Hunter by Walter M. Hunter, Jr., Alexandria, for plaintiff-appellant.

Armand A. Gutierrez, Dallas, Tex., Shuey & Smith, by W. Gene Carlton, Shreveport, Lloyd Teekell, Alexandria, Cook, Clark, Egan, Yancey & King, by Clarence L. Yancey, Shreveport, Gravel, Roy & Burnes, by Stephen E. Everett, Before C. O. Brown, Mike Wahlder, Gold, Hall, Hammill & Little, by F. A. Little, Jr., Garrett, Ryland & Downs, by B. Dexter Ryland, Alexandria, for defendants-appellees.

Before CULPEPPER, MILLER and DOMENGEAUX, JJ.

CULPEPPER, Judge.

This is a petitory action. Plaintiff seeks a judgment recognizing his ownership of an undivided one-half interest in the oil, gas or other minerals on or under ten acres of land in Rapides Parish. Defendants are adverse claimants in possession. The district judge sustained defendant's exception of no cause of action and dismissed plaintiff's suit. Plaintiff appealed.

The principal issue is the effect of a "Correction Deed", which described a different ten acres of land from that described in the original deed, but does not mention a mineral reservation which was contained in the original deed.

In his petition, plaintiff delineates his title back to the common author as follows:

"(a) Cash sale dated July 23, 1956, from Louis Reeves to William A. Reeves, recorded in Conveyance Book 500, page 182;
"(b) Judgment dated April 23, 1959, in proceedings entitled `Succession of William A. Reeves' Probate Docket No. 9513, recorded in Conveyance Book 542, page 551;
"(c) Correction deed dated April 13, 1959, from Louis Reeves to Lorina Marie Reeves, recorded in Conveyance Book 552, page 215;
*170 "(d) Sale and mortgage dated February 24, 1960, from Lorina Marie Reeves to Mrs. Norton R. Roberts, recorded in Conveyance Book 547, page 225;
"(e) Sale and mortgage dated March 7, 1960, from Mrs. Norton R. Roberts to Percy Aymond, recorded in Conveyance Book 547, page 245;
"(f) Cash sale dated June 7, 1962, from Percy Aymond to Larry A. Morace, recorded in Conveyance Book 663, page 299;
"(g) Mineral sale dated June 29, 1966, from Larry Alfred Morace to Robert B. Neblett, Jr., recorded in Conveyance Book 685, page 206;"

Certified copies of the above described instruments are attached to plaintiff's petition by reference and are included in the record before us. The issues on appeal relate to the cash sale dated July 23, 1956 from Louis Reeves to William A. Reeves, hereinafter referred to as the "original deed", and the correction deed dated April 13, 1959 from Louis Reeves to Lorina Marie Reeves, widow of William A. Reeves. The original deed conveys ten acres in the Northwest quarter of the Southeast quarter of Section 28, Township 5 North, Range 3 East, and in that deed the vendor reserves all of the oil, gas and other minerals. The correction deed is not drawn in the customary manner, with an express statement as to the errors sought to be corrected. Instead, the words "Correction Deed" are superimposed on a printed form for a cash sale instrument. The consideration is stated to be "the price and sum previously paid per Conveyance Book 500, page 182, dated filed and recorded July 23, 1956." The "Correction Deed" then follows the printed form and states that for the consideration set forth the vendor conveys to the vendee ten acres of land described as being located in the Northeast quarter of the Southeast quarter of Section 28, Township 5 North, Range 3 East, all as more fully shown by a plat attached. The correction deed contains no mention whatever of the mineral reservation nor any other language explaining the purpose and intent of the parties.

We will first dispose of defendant's argument that the correction deed, under which plaintiff claims the minerals at issue, is invalid and of no effect whatsoever since it was executed only by the original vendor, Louis Reeves, and was not signed by Lorina Marie Reeves, widow of the original vendee, William A. Reeves. The argument here is that a correction deed must be accepted and signed by all parties thereto.

Of course, this is the general rule under LSA-C.C. Article 1798, which provides that every contract requires an offer and an acceptance. However, jurisprudence has established the rule that the acceptance of a contract need not be expressed in it, nor is it indispensable that the act be signed by the party in whose favor it is made. It is sufficient to show acceptance by some act which clearly indicates acceptance. For instance, in Succession of Jenkins, 91 So.2d 416 (La.App. 2d Cir. 1956) the court held that a deed which recited that the purchasers assumed a mortgage, but which was not signed by the purchasers, nevertheless was accepted by the acts of the purchasers in later executing oil and gas leases covering the property. In Saunders v. Bolden, 155 La. 136, 98 So. 867, the court held that a deed, not signed by the grantee, was nevertheless accepted by his taking possession of the land and later selling it. See also Balch v. Young, 23 La.Ann. 272; Industrial Lumber Company v. Rogers, 158 La. 557, 104 So. 367, and Cerami v. Haas, 195 La. 1048, 197 So. 752.

Applying this jurisprudence to the present case, it is clear that although the grantee, Lorina Marie Reeves, did not sign the correction deed, she accepted it, since within a year thereafter she sold the property described in the correction deed to *171 Mrs. Norton R. Roberts for a consideration of $8,500.

The principal issue is the effect to be given the original deed and the correction deed. Plaintiff contends the correction deed is clear and unambiguous, that it corrects the description of the property conveyed but omits any mention of the mineral interest which had been reserved in the original deed, and therefore the correction deed conveyed the minerals to Mrs. Lorina Marie Reeves. On the other hand, defendants argue that the original deed and the correction deed must be construed together to determine their effect and, when this is done, it is apparent that the sole purpose of the correction deed was to correct the property description and to leave unchanged the mineral reservation contained in the original deed.

In a petitory action, where the defendant is in possession, the plaintiff must "make out his title", LSA-C.C.P. Article 3653. This means that all of the instruments on the public records affecting the ownership of the property, back to a common author, must be considered. The plaintiff cannot single out one instrument and disregard the others, Wise v. Watkins, 222 La. 493, 62 So.2d 653 (1952). Plaintiff obviously recognizes this rule since he has delineated his chain of title back to the common author and relies on all of these instruments to prove his ownership.

Also applicable here is the jurisprudence that all persons have constructive notice of the existence and contents of recorded instruments affecting the ownership of immovable property, and if a recorded instrument fairly puts a purchaser on inquiry as to some question in the title, he buys at his own risk, Wells v. Joseph, 234 La.

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Bluebook (online)
257 So. 2d 167, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/neblett-v-placid-oil-company-lactapp-1972.