Rancho Camille, S.A. v. Beachum

596 S.W.2d 632, 1980 Tex. App. LEXIS 3172
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 13, 1980
Docket6126
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 596 S.W.2d 632 (Rancho Camille, S.A. v. Beachum) 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
Rancho Camille, S.A. v. Beachum, 596 S.W.2d 632, 1980 Tex. App. LEXIS 3172 (Tex. Ct. App. 1980).

Opinion

HALL, Justice.

Plaintiffs-appellees Dr. Jerry Beachum and wife Ann Berset Beachum owned approximately 430 acres of land located in Bosque County, Texas. On February 11, 1975, plaintiffs obtained a loan of $134,-000.00 from the Federal Land Bank of Houston to pay off an existing indebtedness on the 430 acres. They executed their promissory note to the Land Bank in the principal sum of the loan. The note was payable in installments, the last installment being due on September 1, 2004. Plaintiffs also executed a deed of trust on the 430 acres in favor of the Land Bank to secure payment of the note. Among other conditions, plaintiffs were required under the deed of trust to pay the note installments when due, to keep insurance on the improvements on the land against loss by fire and storm payable to the Land Bank to the extent of its interest, and to pay all taxes when due.

By general warranty deed dated October 26, 1976, and a correction general warranty deed dated April 14, 1977 (correcting only the omission of a mineral reservation in the first deed), plaintiffs conveyed the 430 acres to defendant-appellant Rancho Camille, S.A. It was recited in the deed that Ran-cho Camille is a Mexican Corporation having its principal place of business in El Limón, Tamaulipas, Republic of Mexico. The consideration stated in both the original and the correction deeds for the conveyance was as follows:

*634 “The sum of Ten Dollars and other valuable consideration . . . and for the further consideration as set forth in Agreement dated October 15, 1976, by and between Jerry Robert Beachum and wife, Ann Berset Beachum, Josefina Juarez de Rodebaugh, Fruticola La Isla, S.A., and Rancho Camille, S.A., to which reference is hereby made for all purposes, and for the further consideration that Grantee hereby assumes and promises to pay, according to the terms thereof, all principal and interest now remaining unpaid on [the $134,000.00 Land Bank note] secured by a Deed of Trust of even date therewith . . . and Grantee hereby assumes and promises to keep and perform all of the covenants and obligations of the Grantors named in said Deed of Trust.”

Additionally, in both the original and correction deeds, plaintiffs expressly retained superior title to the property conveyed and a vendor’s lien against the property until the $134,000.00 note was fully paid.

The original deed from plaintiffs was recorded in the deed records of Bosque County, Texas, on March 4,1977; and the correction deed was recorded there on April 14, 1977.

On February 7, 1978, a lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, by the plaintiffs in our ease against Rancho Camille, S.A., Fruticola La Isla, S.A., Donald G. Rodebaugh, Josefina Juarez Rode-baugh, and John W. Swigart. Among other reliefs sought by plaintiffs in the Federal Court case was the rescission of the conveyance of the 430 acres by plaintiffs to Ran-cho Camille. In connection with the Federal Court suit plaintiffs caused a notice of lis pendens to be filed of record in Bosque County on February 10, 1978, giving notice that the 430 acres, described by metes and bounds, were affected by the Federal Court suit.

Thereafter, on June 26, 1978, the following instruments purporting to convey title to the 430 acres were filed and recorded in the deed records of Bosque County. All were executed on May 27, 1978.

1. A general warranty deed from Ran-cho Camille, S.A., to Leisure Multi-housing Corporation.
2. A special warranty deed from Josefina Juarez de Rodebaugh to Leisure Multihousing Corporation.
3. A special warranty deed from Fruti-cola La Isla, S.A., to Leisure Multi-housing Corporation.

Under the terms of the deeds, the grantee Leisure Multihousing Corporation received the property “subject to but not assuming” the unpaid balance on the $134,000.00 Land Bank note.

Plaintiffs filed the instant suit on December 20, 1978, against defendants-appellants Rancho Camille, S.A., Fruticola La Isla, S.A., Josefina Juarez de Rodebaugh, and Leisure Multihousing Corporation. Plaintiffs pleaded their original and correction deeds to Rancho Camille conveying the 430 acres; their retention of vendor’s lien and superior title; Rancho Camille’s assumption of payment of the Land Bank note and its assumption of and agreement to perform the covenants and terms of the deed of trust securing the note as consideration for the conveyance; and that Rancho Camille had failed to meet its obligations under those instruments in the following particulars: (1) That the annual principal and interest installment in the amount of $11,-647.00 on the note due on September 1, 1978, had not been paid by Rancho Camille, and that the installment was past due and unpaid; (2) that County and State taxes in the amounts of $75.90 for the tax year 1977 and $76.76 for the tax year 1978 had not been paid and remained delinquent; (3) that taxes assessed by the Walnut Springs Independent School District in the amounts of $808.69 (including penalty and interest) for the tax year 1977 and $696.20 for the tax year 1978 had not been paid and remained delinquent; and (4) that the insurance policy insuring the improvements on the property against loss by fire and storm expired on December 1, 1978, and had not been renewed by Rancho Camille. Plaintiffs prayed for rescission and cancellation *635 of their conveyance and deeds to Rancho Camille and for title and possession of the property. Alternatively, they prayed for foreclosure of their vendor’s lien and for possession of the property.

Plaintiffs’ petition also contained these pleadings in paragraph 6 thereof:

“Plaintiffs would show the court that on February 7, 1978, a lawsuit styled Dr. Jerry Robert Beachum and Ann Berset Beachum vs. Rancho Camille, S.A., Fruti-cola La Isla, S.A., Donald G. Rodebaugh, Josefina Juarez Rodebaugh, and John W. Swigart was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, and is presently pending. Said suit is based on alleged violations of the Texas Securities Act, the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, Rule 10b-5, and Art. 27.01, Tex.Bus. & Comm.C. Plaintiffs herein, in the Federal Court suit, seek to rescind all of the transactions between themselves and the above-named Defendants, including the conveyance of the 430.229 acres in Bosque County, which forms the basis of this lawsuit.”

That paragraph was followed by two others pleading the lis pendens notice filed in Bos-que County in connection with the Federal Court suit, and the subsequent conveyances of the 430 acres to Defendant Leisure Mul-tihousing Corporation by defendants Ran-cho Camille, Fruticola, and Josefina Rode-baugh.

Defendants first filed pleas in abatement asserting as grounds therefor (insofar as relevant to this appeal) the admissions set forth in plaintiffs’ petition relating to the pending case in Federal Court.

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

Related

Wilkins v. Reisman
803 S.W.2d 822 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1991)
Farmer's Marine Copper Works, Inc. v. City of Galveston
757 S.W.2d 148 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1988)
Old Alamo Heights Neighborhood Ass'n v. City of Alamo Heights
650 S.W.2d 216 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1983)
Advance Ross Electronics Corp. v. Green, 1981)
624 S.W.2d 316 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1981)
Waterloo Leasing Co. v. McNatt
620 S.W.2d 194 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1981)
B & B Developers v. Ego Resources Corp.
613 S.W.2d 797 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1981)
Crain v. Hill County
613 S.W.2d 367 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1981)
Providence Hospital v. Truly
611 S.W.2d 127 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1980)
Ott v. Bell
606 S.W.2d 955 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1980)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
596 S.W.2d 632, 1980 Tex. App. LEXIS 3172, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rancho-camille-sa-v-beachum-texapp-1980.