Stutsman v. Smith

18 N.W.2d 639, 73 N.D. 664, 1945 N.D. LEXIS 83
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedMay 25, 1945
DocketFile No. 6960
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 18 N.W.2d 639 (Stutsman v. Smith) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stutsman v. Smith, 18 N.W.2d 639, 73 N.D. 664, 1945 N.D. LEXIS 83 (N.D. 1945).

Opinion

*669 Morris, J.

This is an action to quiet title to four tracts of land situated in Morton County. The plaintiff claims title by virtue of two quit-claim deeds dated November 19, 1941, executed by Michael Mann as grantor and running to the plaintiff as grantee. Michael Mann was the original owner of the premises. He failed to pay the taxes thereon for the year 1928 and the land was sold for taxes to Morton County at a tax sale held on December 10, 1929. On that day a certificate of tax sale was issued to Morton County. No taxes were paid on any of the tracts for the year’s 1929, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, and 1935. The 1930 taxes were paid on one tract but not on the other three. On May 20, 1940, the auditor of Morton County issued notices of expiration of period of redemption setting forth amounts necessary to redeem, which separately stated the taxes for the above years. The notices were served on Mann, who was in possession, and published in the official newspaper of Morton County. No redemption was made. On October 1, 1940, the auditor issued tax deeds in which M. J. Tobin, as County Auditor of Morton County and State of North Dakota, was named grantor and Morton County, North Dakota, a municipal corporation, was named grantee. The lands were thereupon placed on the lists of lands forfeited to the county for taxes and were offered to the public at the regular sales of such lands held in November, 1940, and on November 18, 1941. There were no bidders at these sales. *670 Shortly thereafter the defendant John Klein offered to purchase at private sale two of the tracts for the sum of $960 and Max Smith offered to purchase at private sale the other two tracts for the sum of $720. These offers were accepted by the county commissioners. Thereafter the county auditor notified Michael Mann as former owner of the premises that they had been sold subject to his right of redemption and that he was given thirty days to redeem. The amounts set forth in the notices included the 1940 taxes.' No redemption or repurchase was made by Mann, whereupon contracts were issued to Klein and Smith covering the respective tracts that they had offered to buy. This action was instituted in February, 1942. The complaint was later amended to include a claim for one-third of the 1943 crop as the value of the use and occupation of the premises for that year.

On November 3, 1943, auditor’s tax deeds were issued wherein the State of North Dakota was named as grantor and Morton County as grantee and containing the recitals that: “This Deed issued in lieu and correction of tax deed previously issued bearing date of 10/1/40.” The plaintiff challenges the validity of the purchases by Klein and Smith from the county and the county’s right to make the sales upon several grounds. He first contends that the original tax certificates issued to Morton County on December 10, 1929, were void and that the county therefore acquired no title to the land by virtue of the subsequent proceedings. The certificates recited that the county would be entitled to deeds “on and after the tenth day of December, 1932,” while, as a matter of fact, the certificates being dated December 10, 1929, the county could not be entitled to tax deeds until December 11, 1932. The period of time thus stated in the certificates was one day short of the period provided by statute. The plaintiff is correct in his statement of the error that appears in the certificates but he is mistaken as to the legal significance.

The expiration of the period recited in tax sale certificates does not result in an immediate passage of title or the forfeiture of any rights of the original owner. The right of the owner to redeem from the tax sale can only be terminated by the service of á notice of expiration of period of redemption. The county did not seek to terminate the owner’s right of redemption until in 1940, over seven years later. The error of one day in the certificates could not possibly have prejudiced *671 the original owner or in any way have contributed to his loss of the land. An error of such a nature cannot now be asserted by him to defeat the county’s title. Baird v. Zahl, 58 ND 388, 226 NW 549.

The plaintiff next contends that the notices of expiration of redemption issued by the county auditor on May 20, 1940, were insufficient to terminate the owner’s right of redemption. The first challenge is to the manner of service. There was no personal service upon the landowner. Service was made hy mail and by publication in the manner ¡provided by c 235, ND Sess Laws 1939. The provisions regarding the service of the notice of expiration of the period of redemption on property sold to the county for delinquent taxes contained in that chapter applies to all tax deed proceedings initiated subsequent to its effective date and prior to the effective date of c 286, ND Sess Laws 1941. Buman v. Sturn, ante, 561, 16 NW2d 837. The notice having been given within that period, it was sufficient.

The plaintiff next challenges the sufficiency of the proof to show that the proceedings resulted in the termination of the owner’s right of redemption. He argues that the tax deeds issued by the auditor to the county on October 1, 1940, were void because the county auditor and not the State of North Dakota was named therein as grantor. We decided this point in Buman v. Sturn, supra, and held that such tax deeds are void. We held further, however, that where the procedure for terminating the owner’s right of redemption prescribed by c 235, ND Sess Laws 1939, was followed, title passed to the county if redemption was not made though no valid tax deed had been issued. The plaintiff further argues that in this proceeding the burden is on the defendants to establish the validity of the tax title and that since the tax deed was void it does not import the verity of any proceedings looking toward the termination of the right of redemption. He then asserts that there is no proof of the correctness of the amounts set forth in the notice of expiration of the period of redemption with respect to subsequent taxes and interest and penalty thereon, and points to the absence from the record of subsequent tax sale certificates.

The transcript shows that the county auditor identified as exhibits the notices of expiration of the period of redemption that were mailed to the owner. They set forth the amounts necessary to redeem with respect to each year. The plaintiff objected to their introduction upon a *672 number of specific grounds but made no mention of any objection to tbe amounts included as subsequent taxes, nor did he raise any question as to tbe general foundation laid for tbe introduction of tbe notices. Tbe notices were properly received over tbe objections made. Later tbe county auditor testified at some length regarding tbe inclusion of subsequent taxes in tbe notices and tbe manner of computation. No question was raised as to tbe correctness of tbe amounts and no motion made to strike tbe exhibits containing these amounts from tbe record. The county auditor is a public official whose duty it is to properly compute and include tbe amounts in tbe notices of expiration of redemption. Under tbe record, as it is presented here, these notices import verity and we will not remand tbe case for further proof with respect to tbe amounts of subsequent taxes. Tbe record contains nothing that implies that tbe amounts stated are excessive.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
18 N.W.2d 639, 73 N.D. 664, 1945 N.D. LEXIS 83, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stutsman-v-smith-nd-1945.