Strickland v. Malone

68 So. 2d 48, 260 Ala. 62, 1953 Ala. LEXIS 33
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedJune 30, 1953
Docket6 Div. 354
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 68 So. 2d 48 (Strickland v. Malone) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Strickland v. Malone, 68 So. 2d 48, 260 Ala. 62, 1953 Ala. LEXIS 33 (Ala. 1953).

Opinion

GOODWYN, Justice.

This is an appeal from a decree sustaining demurrers to a bill in equity. The bill, in substance, alleges the following:

The complainants, husband and wife, on January 5, 1951, entered into a written contract with respondent, Paul Malone, for the sale and purchase of 403.37 acres of land in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. The body of this contract, leaving out the land description, is as follows:

“Know All Men By These Presents, That in consideration of the sum of Five Dollars ($5.00) in cash, paid to Clyde H. Strickland and wife, Mrs. Lili A. Strickland, as Sellers, by Paul R. Malone as Purchaser, receipt of which payment being hereby acknowledged, the said Clyde H. Strickland and wife, Mrs. Lili A. Strickland, agree to sell and the said Paul R. Malone agrees to purchase, on the terms hereinafter stated, the following described lands located and being in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, to-wit: (description omitted).
“The said Paul R. Malone agrees to pay the balance of the purchase price of Eleven Dollars ($11.00) an acre, less the Five Dollars ($5.00) paid in consideration of this agreement, subject to the terms of this agreement, on or before the expiration of sixty days from the date of this agreement, and upon the payment of said balance of the purchase price the undersigned Clyde H. Strickland and wife, Lili A. Strickland, will execute and deliver unto the said Paul R. Malone or any party or parties designated by him, at the time of such payment, a full warranty deed to the above described lands.
“It is understood and agreed that the total acreage being sold in four hundred three and thirty-seven one-hundredths (403.37) acres, and that the full purchase price, including the $5.00 paid herewith, is $11.00 per acre or Four Thousand Four Hundred Thirty-seven and 7/100 Dollars ($4,437.07).
“Paul R. Malone may purchase such abstract or abstracts of title to the above described property, or any portion or part thereof, as may be desired, and in the event any curative work may be necessary to cure the title, is hereby given the option of paying for the curative work or demanding return of the $5.00 herewith, in which event this contract is to become null and void, title being subject to the approval of Paul R. Malone’s attorneys.
“Paul R. Malone, at his own expense, may have any parcel or all of the above described land survey (sic) by any registered and licensed surveyor and should the number of acres shown by said survey not amount to at least 403 acres, the said Paul R. Malone is given the option of paying $4,-437.07 for said property or of declaring this contract null and void because the acreage is short. However, if said property is purchased, the purchase price shall be the sum of $4,437.07.
“It is further understood that Sellers will not sell a part or portion of the hereinabove described land, should it develop that the acreage does not total 403 acres or that title is defective to a part or portion of said property.
“This contract is assignable by the parties hereto and said full warranty deed is to be made to such party or parties designated by Paul R. Malone.
“Upon the sale and conveyance being completed, possession of the entire property described above shall thereup-. on be delivered to the purchaser or purchasers.
“In Witness Whereof, we hereunto set our hands and seals on this the 5th day of January, 1951.”

This contract is attached to the bill of complaint as exhibit “A” and is made a part of the bill. Pursuant to this agreement, the complainants executed a general warranty deed to respondents. The date of the deed is not shown by the record, but it is alleged in the bill of complaint as follows:

[65]*65“That four days prior to the expiration of the sixty days set out in Complainants’ exhibit A, that the respondent, Paul Malone, caused the Honorable Bruce McEachin to call the Complainant, Clyde Strickland, on the telephone, and tell him that Malone was ready to close the deal, and to please draw the deed to Paul R. Malone, Robert Malone, and E. L. Hendricks. That the Complainant, Clyde Strickland, in reliance on this conversation, called the Honorable C. W. Gross, attorney, who had no knowledge of the existing written agreement, and instructed him to go to Mr. .Bruce McEachin’s office to get the old deeds, and prepare a new deed from the Complainants to the Respondents, and submit the same to Honorable Bruce McEachin for approval.”

The bill further alleges that such deed was prepared by Mr. Gross and the agreed purchase price of $4,437.07 was paid to complainants; that “prior to the acceptance of said deed, and while the written agreement (plaintiff’s Exhibit A) was in full force and effect, the respondent, Paul R. Malone, caused his attorney, Bruce Mc-Eachin, to make an investigation of the title of said lands,” and that said investigation revealed that one H. L. Phillips was claiming twenty acres of said lands and “possibly that the State of Alabama was claiming an additional forty acres of said lands.” It is then alleged:

“That the said Respondent, Paul R. Malone, fraudulently and wrongfully withheld this information from your Complainants, at the time he accepted said warranty deed from them for the Respondents. That at the time Respondent Malone accepted said warranty deed, and prior thereto, that he was wrongfully and fraudulently, conspiring, conniving, and scheming to obtain a full warranty deed from the Complainants, without the restrictions or reservations agreed to between the parties and set out in the Complainants’ exhibit ‘A,’ as to acreage and title, and then, sue, the Complainants, for a breach of said warranty deed.
“That on the 16th day of April, 1951, the Respondents, caused, Attorney Bruce McEachin, to write a letter to the Complainant, Clyde H. Strickland, stating that he was liable for a breach of warranty as to acreage and title, and liable for all breach of warranties which would develop in the future. That the Respondents are now, fraudulently conspiring to sue the Complainants, for a breach of warranty in said deed in violation of, said written agreement (Plaintiff’s Exhibit ‘A.’).”

The prayer of the bill is for a decree declaring “that the effect of said warranty deed, is that of a quitclaim deed, or that the Complainants are not responsible to the Respondent, by virtue of any warranties as to acreage or title, contained therein, or in the alternate”; that “said deed is null and void, and of no effect whatsoever,” and that the $4,437.07 heretofore deposited with the Register by the complainant be ordered paid to the respondents; that Respondent, Paul H. Malone, be required to respond in damages to the Complainant, for the trouble, time and expense he has caused the Complainants by fraudulently asserting and claiming, a breach of warranty in violation of his written agreement with the Complainants,” including a reasonable solicitor’s fee; and that respondents “be enjoined from filing any suit at law or equity against your Complainants for any alleged breach of the warranties as to title or acreage contained in said deed.”

In support of the equity of the bill, appellants assert the following two propositions:

I.

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

Related

Holland v. Hoffman
443 So. 2d 931 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1983)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
68 So. 2d 48, 260 Ala. 62, 1953 Ala. LEXIS 33, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/strickland-v-malone-ala-1953.