Smith v. Parsons

11 S.E. 68, 33 W. Va. 644, 1890 W. Va. LEXIS 30
CourtWest Virginia Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 3, 1890
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 11 S.E. 68 (Smith v. Parsons) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering West Virginia Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Smith v. Parsons, 11 S.E. 68, 33 W. Va. 644, 1890 W. Va. LEXIS 30 (W. Va. 1890).

Opinion

Bkannon, Judge:

Job Parsons, Jr., brought a suit in equity in the Circuit Court of Randolph county against Job W. Parsons as the [645]*645only defendant, to enforce the lien of a judgment against land of the defendant. Afterwards an amended bill was filed which made additional defendants certain persons who, in the deed conveying to the debtor the land sought to be subjected retained a lien thereon for purchase-money, and also making defendants the trustee and parties secured by a deed of trust given by Job "W. Parsons to secure certain endorsers upon a note owned by the Bank of Kingwood, which conveyed the same land. A reference was made to any of the commissioners of the court to ascertain the lands owned by Job W. Parsons, and the title thereto and the liens thereon and directed publication of notice to lienholders. After-wards there were four reports made by commissioners under this order and orders of recommittal reporting various liens on the land. During the progress of the suit an order was made reciting that the debt of the plaintiff Job Parsons, Jr., had been paid, and it was ordered that the cause proceed in the name of the National Bank of Piedmont as plaintiff, which, as appeared by a commissioner’s report, had a judg-' ment against the debtor; and later an order was entered reciting that the debt of the National Bank of Piedmont had been paid and ordering the cause to proceed in the name of Laban P. Smith as plaintiff, he having debts against Parsons reported in said report. An order was made recommending the cause to rules with leave to file an amended bill, but afterwards it was set aside and no further amended bill was filed. To the fourth commissioner’s report reporting debts against Parsons he filed exceptions.

An important controversy in this cause relates to a debt reported and decreed in favor of Laban P. Smith against Parsons growing out of a sale made by Smith to Job W. Parsons, by an executory agreement by which Smith sold Parsons his undivided interest in the land in Randolph sought to be sold in this suit for the sum of $2,745.00, and Smith stipulated to convey said interest with covenant of general warranty when the purchase-money should be paid.

Parsons claimed abatements from this debt of Laban P. Smith. One of the abatements was $350.00 for a portion of the expenses incurred by Parsons in defence of an action of ejectment brought by Hoffman’s executors and others [646]*646against him for the recovery of some of this land, which upon trial resulted in the success of Parsons and the vindication of the title he acquired from Smith. Another abatement claimed was $23.00 for a portion of the expenses in prosecuting an ejectment brought by Parsons against Pennington for thirty nine acres of land which he claimed was included in that sold by Smith to him, and $50.00 for loss of the use of said thirty nine acres, and $150.00 for the loss of the thirty nine acres in the event it should be lost. Another abatement claimed by Parsons was $142.50 for land claimed by the heirs of White.

At this point let us dispose of this controversy as to the debt of Smith against Parsons. Parsons was certainly not entitled to an abatement of $350.00 for costs paid in defending the ejectment suit of Hoffman’s executors against him. It is true that Smith in his sale to Parsons stipulated for a conveyance with general warranty, but the ejectment resulted in favor of the title sold by Smith, and showed that it was the paramount title. A covenant of general warranty is not broken until there is an eviction under a paramount title or what is equivalent. Rex v. Creel, 22 W. Va., 373; 2 Minor’s Ins., 643; 2 Lomax Dig., 355; 2 Rob. Prac. (new) 87; 2 Sutherland on Dam., 279; Rawle, Cov. Title, §§ 127, 131; Yancey v. Lewis, 4 Hen. and Munf. 390.

Why, then, should Smith pay costs expended in defending this action ? He sold a good and valid title, as shown by the result of the action of ejectment, and did no wrong in so doing, and by no reasonable view can it be cláimed that he was to stand good for expenses in defence of assaults by inferior title. He did not warrant that no one should ever sue Parsons for the land, or in any manner bind himself to refund expenses incurred in defending the land against anyone who might thinkhe had a valid claim to the land and bring a suit for it. Had Parsons lost the land, then Smith upon his covenant would have been bound for the land lost- and costs expended in an unsuccessful defence of the title. Threlkeld v. Fitzhugh, 2 Leigh 451; 2 Sutherland on Dam. 302; Rawle, Cov. Title, § 197. But the covenantee is clearly not entitled to demand of the covenantor expenses in defending a suit which sustains the title as valid, for the covenant [647]*647does not bind for any outlays necessitated by the simple existence or assertion of an adverse claim. The covenant does not protect against any but lawful claims which negative the title that the deed purports to convey. 2 Sutherland on Dam., 308 ; Rawle, Cov. Title, § 201.

The next question is, whether Parsons is entitled to costs paid by him in the ejectment brought by him against Pennington for the thirty nine acres, and for its use, and for its loss should it occur. The record is not clear as to this thirty nine acres. Smith sold Parsons the undivided two thirds of one undivided fourth of the Conrad and Smith tract of 5-,606 acres of land, as found by the Commissioner in his last report.

It seems from Kile’s deposition that this thirty nine acres lies within this Conrad and Smith survey; hut thetitle-hond between Laban P. Smith and Job. W. Parsons recites that Smith owned that undivided interest in said land of which Laban Smith died seized as an heir of Laban Smith, except an interest, owned by Parsons under the will of his. wife, nee Smith, and it is the interest of Laban P. Smith thus described which Smith sold to Parsons. Now, Laban P. Smith did not sell Parsons any land of which Laban Smith did not die seized. Kile says that he understood that this thirty nine acre tract was surveyed by TTllery Conrad and Laban Smith for Geo. M. Summerfield, “but it was never conveyed by them to Summerfield by deed.” Parsons himself as a witness was asked whether the thirty nine acres was not the same land sold and surveyed by Smith and Conrad to Pennington or his vendors long before his purchase from L. P. Smith, and whether Pennington did not have possession of it, and whether there was not considerable improvement there at the time of his purchase from Smith; aud he answered as follows: “Yes, I guess so; that is my understanding of it. The improvement was there, but not fenced; it all laid open adjoining our lands. They made some kind of purchase, but they never had a deed or any title that I heard of, more than some kind of a contract. We claimed it and also the fifty seven acres. I guess they had a kind of a title bond from Smith and Conrad —I think they did; ain’t certain of it.” Prom this it seems to me that Laban Smith and Conrad had sold this thirty nine [648]*648acres in the lifetime of Laban Smith, and that Laban Smith did not die owner of it, and that Laban P. Smith’s title-bond is not to be held as selling this thirty nine acres to Parsons. Commissioner Ward says he disallowed this claim for abatement for the reason that Parsons in his deposition said that the thirty nine acres was sold by Conrad and Smith to Pennington long before his purchase from L. P.' Smith, and I think he was correct in so finding.

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

Related

Jarrett v. Scofield
92 A.2d 370 (Court of Appeals of Maryland, 2001)
Foltz v. Manson
4 P.2d 509 (Washington Supreme Court, 1931)
Hoffman v. Dickson
118 P. 737 (Washington Supreme Court, 1911)
Armstrong v. Maryland Coal Co.
69 S.E. 195 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1910)
Pineland Mfg. Co. v. Guardian Trust Co.
122 S.W. 1133 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1909)
Cain v. Fisher
50 S.E. 752 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1905)
Gall v. Gall
40 S.E. 380 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1901)
Miller v. Morrison
35 S.E. 905 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1900)
Morrison v. Waggy
27 S.E. 314 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1897)
Bowman v. Duling
20 S.E. 567 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1894)
Turk v. Skiles
18 S.E. 561 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1893)
Holsberry v. Poling
18 S.E. 485 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1893)
Caperton's Adm'rs v. Caperton's Heirs
15 S.E. 257 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1892)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
11 S.E. 68, 33 W. Va. 644, 1890 W. Va. LEXIS 30, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-parsons-wva-1890.