Putman v. Cowart

87 So. 2d 479, 228 Miss. 103, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 491
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedMay 21, 1956
DocketNo. 39857
StatusPublished

This text of 87 So. 2d 479 (Putman v. Cowart) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Putman v. Cowart, 87 So. 2d 479, 228 Miss. 103, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 491 (Mich. 1956).

Opinion

Gillespie, J.

Appellants had lost 40 acres of land to the Federal Land Bank, apparently under some prior foreclosure. They wanted to buy it back but were unable to do so. They approached appellee to buy the land for them. Appellee agreed to do so if appellants would pay him $25 and if they would pay him back as quick as he got it; but the- proof showed conclusively that appellee was to [106]*106put up the money and that he was buying the land for appellants. This was done by appellee and he took title in himself. The Federal Land Bank reserved one-half of the minerals. Appellee paid the Federal Land Bank $375.00 at the time he got the deed as the full purchase price of the land. At the time appellee purchased the land, appellants had paid appellee $175.00.

A few months after appellee received, the deed from the Bank, he caused to be prepared and executed a deed from himself to appellants wherein all minerals were reserved to the grantor, appellee. The Bank had already reserved one-half of the minerals in its deed to appellee. This deed from appellee to appellants was read to appellants, but not delivered at that time. At the same time, appellants executed a note and deed of trust to appellee for $229.22, being the balance of the amount paid the Federal Land Bank less $175.00 theretofore paid appellee by appellants, plus the $25.00 charge, and $4.22 for recording fees. This deed of trust and note was dated February 15, 1937, and due October 30, 1937, with 6% interest. Appellee held the deed executed by him to appellants with the note and deed of trust until the deed of trust was paid, at which time the deed was recorded.

This suit by appellants is to reform the deed from appellee to appellants so as to cancel the provision reserving to appellee the minerals. Only a half interest in the minerals is involved since the Bank reserved half in its deed to appellee. Appellants contend that the appellee held title as trustee under a resulting trust. The chancellor applied the doctrine of resulting trust as laid down in a number of cases, including Chichester v. Chichester, 209 Miss. 628, 48 So. 2d 123, to the effect that if one buys land in the name of another and pays the consideration therefor, the land will be held by the grantee in trust for the benefit of him who advances the purchase money; and if there has been only a partial [107]*107advance of the purchase money, a trust will result pro tanto. Where upon the chancellor held that since appellants had advanced $175.00 of the $375.00 purchase price prior to appellee acquiring the land, that a trust arose as to the minerals to the extent that $175.00 hears to $375.00, or 7/15th of 20 undivided mineral acres under the 40 acre tract, or 9.331 mineral acres.

But appellants contend that the rule in Tanous v. White, 186 Miss. 556, 191 So. 278, is applicable to the facts of this case and that the appellants are not limited to an application of the resulting trust pro tanto, but that the trust arose as to the full interest acquired by appellee in the land and minerals. We agree with this contention.

In Tanous v. White, supra, this Court said: “In Dooly v. Pinson, supra, the Court said in part (145 Ala. 659, 39 So. 667): ‘Where one person advances money to another by way of a loan, through a payment to a third person for land which the borrower has purchased or is purchasing, and to secure the loan the lender takes the title of the land to himself, with the agreement and understanding between him and the real purchase that he will reconvey to the latter on repayment of the money advanced, equity will declare the holder of the title a trustee therefor, for the purchaser, and compel him to discharge the trust by the reconveyance stipulated for upon the payment to him of the money to secure which the title was vested in him. ’ ’ ’

In the same case, the Court also said: “In their last analysis, the facts of this case mean that Captain Punchard sold the land to appellees for $600; that appellant lent them the $600 to pay for the land, but instead of putting the money in their hands, he put it directly in Punchard’s hands, and, as security for the repayment of the purchase money, took the conveyance to himself. Suppose appellant had delivered the $600 to appellee as a loan to pay for the land and in turn they had delivered [108]*108it to Punchard for that purpose. Undoubtedly, under the law, the deed would he a mere mortgage to secure the repayment of the money. We are unable to see any substantial difference between such a transaction and the one here involved. Here, appellant said in effect to appellees: ‘I will lend you the $600.00 to pay for the land, but will simply make the payment myself for you. ’ We think the governing principles would be the same.”

Tanous v. White, supra, is squarely in point. The effect of the agreement between appellee and appellants was that appellee would lend them the money to buy the land. Instead of putting the money in appellants ’ hands, he paid it direct to the Federal Land Bank and took title in himself to secure the purchase price. Title was held by appellee as trustee for the benefit of appellants until the purchase price was paid to appellee. He was fully paid the purchase price, plus his $25.00 charge and his recording expense. When appellee attempted to reserve all the minerals, he not only breached the trust, but it was an ineffective reservation; for appellee could not reserve what he did not have. Appellants were the beneficial owners of the land and the minerals.

Appellee cannot defeat the trust on the grounds that what he did was a friendly act to aid and assist appellants. “Such considerations are the foundation of almost every trust, and the trustee should be held to account as nearly as possible in the same spirit in which he originally contracted.” Suggins v. Heard, 31 Miss. 426.

The reading of the deed to appellants did not operate to divest appellants of their beneficial ownership of the minerals.

The case is reversed and judgment rendered here for appellants for all the minerals acquired by appellee from the Federal Land Bank, and remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent herewith.

Reversed and remanded.

[109]*109Roberds, P.J., and Kyle, Arrington, and Ethridge, JJ., concur.

ON MOTION TO REVIVE

McGehee, C. J.

A final decree was entered by the chancellor in this cause on March 8, 1954. The appeal bond was filed on July 29, 1954, and the record was filed in this Court on March 29, 1955. On November 4, 1955, a suggestion of death and motion to revive was filed by the heirs of the appellant, Paul Putman and Ira Putman. In their motion the movants averred that both Paul Putman and Ira Putman had died intestate since the rendition of the final decree in the lower court, and that appellant, Paul Putman, left as his sole heirs at law, Sara Jane Putman, his wife, Lentee Putman Brown, Carrie Johnson, Bessie Johnson, Annie Gayten, Oralee Franklin, Alice Mae Blackmon and Clementine Hudson; and that the appellant, Ira Putman, left as his sole and only heirs at law Doshia Putman, Ralph Putman and June Putman; and the movants ask that the cause be revived in their names as heirs of the appellants. The motion has been filed by the attorneys for all of the above mentioned heirs, and in their motion enter their appearances in this cause for all legal intents and purposes.

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Related

Chichester v. Chichester
48 So. 2d 123 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1950)
Tanous v. White
191 So. 278 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1939)
Soggins v. Heard
31 Miss. 426 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1856)

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Bluebook (online)
87 So. 2d 479, 228 Miss. 103, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 491, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/putman-v-cowart-miss-1956.