Williams v. Miranda

323 P.2d 794, 159 Cal. App. 2d 143, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 1973
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 3, 1958
DocketCiv. 22477
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 323 P.2d 794 (Williams v. Miranda) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Williams v. Miranda, 323 P.2d 794, 159 Cal. App. 2d 143, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 1973 (Cal. Ct. App. 1958).

Opinion

PATROSSO, J. pro tem. *

We are presented here with separate appeals by the plaintiff and cross-defendants upon the one hand, and by the defendant and cross-complainant on the other, from portions of a decree entered in an action wherein plaintiff sought partition of a parcel of real property.

On September 7, 1943, defendant Max Miranda and cross-defendant Mary Louise Miranda, now Mary Louise Brown, who will hereinafter be referred to as Mrs. Miranda, were husband and wife and the owners as joint tenants of the sub *147 jeet property. On that date a divorce action between them being pending, the parties entered into a property settlement agreement which provided among other things that the title to said property should remain in the names of the parties as joint tenants so long as Mrs. Miranda did not remarry and as long as the property was occupied by Mrs. Miranda as a home for herself and the two minor children of the parties, with the proviso that should Mrs. Miranda remarry the property should be sold, both parties agreeing to execute the necessary deeds, and the proceeds derived therefrom should be used for the support and maintenance of said minor children at the rate of $50 per month, and 1 ‘ during the period of time said money is being expended” Mr. Miranda should be relieved from making any further payments for the support of said minor children. Until that time, however, Mr. Miranda agreed to pay $25 per month for the support of the children and further agreed to make the monthly payments of $25 due upon the encumbrance upon said property and to pay when due, all taxes and assessments levied against the property. Thereafter an interlocutory decree was entered in the divorce action followed by an entry of a final decree on October 30, 1944.

On May 2, 1946, Mrs. Miranda instituted an action in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County for the partition of the real property which is the subject of this action. Mr. Miranda appeared in that action, filing an answer and cross-complaint wherein he set forth the terms of the property settlement agreement and prayed a decree that Mr. and Mrs. Miranda held said property in trust for the use and benefit of the minor children in accordance with the terms of the property settlement agreement. In addition, the minor children acting by and through Max Miranda as their guardian ad litem, filed a complaint in intervention wherein they alleged substantially the same facts as those set forth in the cross-complaint of Mr. Miranda and prayed a decree that the said property was held in trust by Mr. and Mrs. Miranda for their use and benefit in accordance with the terms of the property settlement agreement. By its finding the court in that action found the facts to be as alleged in the cross-complaint of Max Miranda and the complaint in intervention of the children; and by its judgment decreed that Mrs. Miranda take nothing by her complaint; and that the property was held in trust pursuant to the provisions of the property settlement agreement. An appeal was taken from this *148 judgment by Mrs. Miranda to the District Court of Appeal where it was affirmed. (Miranda v. Miranda (1947), 81 Cal.App.2d 61 [183 P.2d 61].)

. Following the affirmance of the judgment last mentioned and on January 27, 1948, Mrs. Miranda married one Kelly Brown and on March 26,1948, she commenced a new proceeding in the superior court for the partition of the property and the termination of the trust. Process in this action was served upon Mr. Miranda and his default for failure to appear was duly entered therein but no further proceeding was had in said action until it was dismissed on July 6, 1956, following the filing of the instant action.

On February 5, 1954, the interest of Mrs. Miranda in the property was sold to the plaintiff for the sum of $1,272.39 at an execution sale upon a judgment obtained against Mrs. Miranda in the Municipal Court of the Los Angeles Judicial District, and on February 14, 1955, the marshal of said court duly issued to plaintiff his deed therefor, following which, on May 5, 1955, plaintiff instituted this action. The only party named as defendant therein is Max Miranda and the complaint is in the customary form of an action in partition alleging that the plaintiff and defendant are the owners as tenants in common of the property in question; that plaintiff has an estate of inheritance therein to the extent of the undivided one-half interest in fee thereof; that the defendant has a similar interest therein; that there are no liens or encumbrances thereon appearing of record and that no person other than the plaintiff and the defendant is interested in said premises as owner or otherwise. The complaint concludes with a prayer for a partition of the property and if partition cannot be had, for a sale thereof and that the proceeds be applied to the payment of the general costs of the action; the payment of reasonable attorney’s fees incurred for the common benefit and that the residue be divided equally between the plaintiff and the defendant. Defendant appeared in the action by filing an answer and cross-complaint and in his answer he denies that the plaintiff and defendant are owners as tenants in common of the property; denies that plaintiff has any interest therein and alleges that the legal title thereto, is held by himself and Mrs. Miranda as trustees under the terms of the express trust created by the property settlement agreement, the terms of which are therein set forth. By way of special defense, defendant pleads the judgment rendered in the first partition action hereinbefore mentioned; that the plaintiff is the successor in interest of Mrs. Miranda as to *149 her interest in the property; that plaintiff is the brother-in-law of the present husband of Mrs. Miranda and that plaintiff and Mrs. Miranda have entered into and are engaged in a conspiracy to defraud the beneficiaries and the defendant of their interest in said property and to circumvent the judgment rendered in the prior partition action; “that to carry out the aforesaid conspiracy the plaintiff herein accepted and received a conveyance of said property, without consideration or with knowledge of the aforesaid trust, and with intent on his part to assist defendant’s said former wife in and for said fraudulent purposes, and to hold said property as a secret trust for the use and benefit of defendant’s said former wife; that plaintiff has no right, title or interest in and to said property, but holds the same in trust for the use and benefit of the aforesaid express trust; that the within action was brought by plaintiff herein for the purpose of perpetrating the aforesaid fraudulent conspiracy, and in furtherance thereof and for the purpose of harassing defendant and to induce him to agree to a sale of said property and a division of the proceeds of said sale between defendant and defendant’s former wife and the plaintiff herein in violation of the terms and provisions of the aforesaid express trust.”

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Bluebook (online)
323 P.2d 794, 159 Cal. App. 2d 143, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 1973, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williams-v-miranda-calctapp-1958.