Pettiford v. Weisenthal

78 N.W.2d 177, 346 Mich. 339, 1956 Mich. LEXIS 320
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 4, 1956
DocketDocket No. 13, Calendar No. 46,581
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 78 N.W.2d 177 (Pettiford v. Weisenthal) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pettiford v. Weisenthal, 78 N.W.2d 177, 346 Mich. 339, 1956 Mich. LEXIS 320 (Mich. 1956).

Opinion

Black, J.

April 3, 1953, defendants as first parties and plaintiffs as second parties entered into that which in form is an executory land contract. The instrument contemplated sale to and acquisition by plaintiffs of certain real estate known in the record as Cross-of-Malta Park and certain personal property described in the contract under heading “Inventory of Personal Property at Cross-of-Malta Park.” Claiming that the mentioned instrument had come to default on the part of plaintiffs, defendants gave notice of intent to forfeit followed by notice of forfeiture. November 7, 1953, they instituted summary proceedings under statute (CL 1948, § 630.12 et seq. [Stat Ann § 27.1986 et seq.] ) before a circuit court commissioner. Unopposed judgment for [341]*341plaintiffs in such, statutory proceeding (defendants here) was entered by the commissioner November 30, 1953.

This bill, filed by the present plaintiffs for relief against the commissioner’s judgment, was thereupon filed. It is unnecessary to detail allegations of the bill beyond statement that it charges fraud against defendants and want of jurisdiction on the part of the circuit court commissioner. The him of the bill is to have the mentioned instrument of April 3, 1953, together with the various accompanying legal transactions as presently described, decreed an equitable mortgage with auxiliary holding that such remedies as the present defendants may possess thereunder are equitable in nature.

The chancellor ruled in favor of the present plaintiffs. His opinion details most of the facts upon which our decision must rest, and we adopt the' findings of fact set forth therein as follows: ■

“Plaintiffs were desirous of purchasing■> real and personal properties located in Prenchtown township, Monroe county, Michigan. Acting at the request of and'in behalf of plaintiffs, the defendants purchased the vendor’s interests in an outstanding land contract ; on April 3,1953, they entered into a land contract with plaintiffs as vendees.
“The land contract required monthly payments of $250 and credited a down payment of $10,000 on the purchase price of $50,000 (plaintiff’s exhibit 1). Further payments on the principal account in the respective amounts of $8,500 were required 6 months and 1 year after the date of the land contract. Said parties’ contract also contained the following:
“ ‘That in the closing of this deal, the purchasers shall have the right, in lieu of the payment of $8,000 in cash as part of the $10,000 down payment, to substitute securities, of a nature and type agreeable to and approved by the sellers; that upon the acceptance thereof by the sellers and conveyance of a good [342]*342and marketable title thereto by the purchasers, the purchasers shall have the right to a reassignment or re-conveyance thereof provided the purchasers pay the sum of $8,000 plus interest at 6% less any moneys received on said principal account, to the sellers on or before April 1, 1953,
“Pursuant to said last-mentioned contract item plaintiff assigned to defendants a number of land contracts possessing a claimed vendor’s interest of $23,000. Since said assignments defendants have exercised full ownership rights of the vendor’s interest therein, and the' court is not advised as to what, if any, credits were given plaintiffs for funds derived from said assigned contracts. Although various of these contract agreements were contained in separate instruments the court is of the opinion that they together must be viewed as constituting but 1 contract.
“In October of 1953 defendants instituted a summary proceedings before a local circuit court commissioner claiming forfeiture of land contract based upon vendee’s failure to pay the specified monthly payments of $250 on September 3,1953 and on October 3, 1953,- and of failure to pay the principal sum of $8,500 due on or before October 3,1953. This proceeding was based solely upon the executed land contract form and wholly excluded from the said proceedings any reference to the pledged land- contracts agreement. Judgment for possession was rendered by the circuit court commissioner on November 30, 1953.
“The present case attacking the jurisdiction of the circuit court commissioner over the subject matter of the said transaction between.the parties hereto and praying injunctive relief was thereupon entered.” :

[343]*343To-the foregoing we add the following facts:

The “Inventory of Personal Property at Cross-of-Malta Park,” forming as noted above a part of the subject matter of the entire transaction, constituted no small or insignificant part of such subject matter. It consists of just about everything one might find in the way of equipment of an amusement park including the rigging and appliances of a licensed tavern, a fire truck, a road grader, a merry-go-round, children’s slides and play apparatus, barbecue equipment, “other miscellaneous items used in the operation of a park,” and all of the furniture and equipment apparently necessary to the use and occupancy of 4 apartments and a cottage situated on the park property. Such personalty is not, as we shall see, legally divisible from the realty portion of the aforesaid subject matter.

At this point defendants’ criticism of the first-quoted paragraph of the chancellor’s finding is noted. Counsel say:

“Second, the finding that ‘defendants purchased the vendor’s interests in an outstanding land contract’ is without basis. The trial court was obviously referring to Cross-of-Malta Park. At the time of the execution of each of the preliminary agreements there was no such outstanding land contract in existence. Upon consummation of each of the transactions, defendants become parties to 2 new land contracts. The only vendors’ interest in a Cross-of-Malta Park land contract owned by defendants was in the newly-created land contract between the parties.”

The chancellor, of course, had before him all of the factual circumstances shown as having led up to execution of the executory instrument of April 3, 1953. It was duly established by proof that George J. Weisenthal and Louis Glieberman initially arranged to purchase the mentioned real and personal [344]*344property from city of Monroe Post No 1138, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, a nonprofit corporation. The latter then held legal title to such realty and personalty. Between the date of aforesaid preliminary agreement and execution of what is known in the record as the “first land contract”,* the said George J. Weisenthal and Louis Glieberman transferred their rights under such preliminary purchase agreement to the present defendants.

The facts just related in our view fully support the chancellor’s finding that “defendants purchased the vendor’s interests in an outstanding land contract.” We accordingly hold that the quoted objection thereto is not well-founded.

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Bluebook (online)
78 N.W.2d 177, 346 Mich. 339, 1956 Mich. LEXIS 320, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pettiford-v-weisenthal-mich-1956.