34 Mich. 384 | Mich. | 1876
In. the court below Livingston recovered a judgment in. ejectment on the strength of an estoppel in pais. Ilis case was, that Hayes, whose title to the land at a former time was conceded, had given two mortgages upon it, one of which had been foreclosed under the power of sale, and the land sold to a third party; that the other being held by one Corey, an arrangement was made between him and Hayes, under which Corey ivas to buy up the title under the foreclosure, and then when he should be able to find a purchaser, sell the land and from the proceeds take out the amount of his mortgage and the amount he should have paid for the foreclosure title, and pay over the remainder to Hayes; that this arrangement was carried out so far as concerned the purchase of the ' foreclosure title, and that subsequently Corey sold to Livingston, being first told to do so by Hayes, and Livingston not making the purchase until
If the rule of estoppel in pais is the same when the right to real property is involved as it is when only personalty is in question, the circuit judge was undoubtedly right 'in his instruction. The principle is so old that it has ceased to be brought into controversy, that when one has knowledge that his- own chattels are being sold as the property of another, and encourages the sale without asserting his right, or even by his silence allows a purchase to be made in ignorance of his title, he shall not thereafter be permitted to assert such title to the prejudice of the purchaser. The rule is as sound in morals as it is indisputable in point of law; and has often been recognized in this court. — Dann v. Cudney, 13 Mich., 239; Truesdail v. Ward, 24 Mich., 117; Meister v. Birney, 24 Mich., 435.
But a difficulty arises when it is proposed to apply the same principle to real estate. The statute of frauds is express that no interests in lands, with certain exceptions which are unimportant here, shall be created or transferred otherwise than by deed; and although it is perfectly true, as ■j;s shown by Mr. Bigelow in his treatise on the law of estop
It is not to be denied, however, that there are several cases which apply the doctrine of estoppel indiscriminately to both real and personal estate. The cases in Maine are very decided. — Hatch v. Kimball, 16 Me., 146; Durham v. Alden, 20 Me., 228; Rangeley v. Spring, 21 Me., 137; Copeland v. Copeland, 28 Me., 525; Stevens v. McNamara, 36 Me., 176; Bigelow v. Foss, 59 Me., 162. These cases appear to have overruled Hamlin v. Hamlin, 19 Me., 141. The following are usually referred to as supporting the Maine cases: McCune v. McMichael, 29 Geo., 312; Beaupland v. McKeen, 28 Penn. St., 124; Shaw v. Beebe, 35 Vt., 205; Brown v. Wheeler, 17 Conn., 345; Brown v. Bowen, 30 N. Y., 519; Barham v. Turbeville, 1 Swan, 437. Of these the Georgia case related to a parol partition of slaves acquiesced in until after the death of one of the- parties, and was decided without any discussion of or reference to the distinctions between real and personal estate. The case in Pennsylvania was a suit on a promissory note given on a purchase of lands, the payment of which was resisted on the ground of failure of title. The persons in whom the title was alleged to be had been the plaintiff’s agents in the sale, and had been paid a commission for making it; and they were held to be estopped from denying the plaintiff’s right. It is to be observed of this case that the title was only incidentally in question, and also that in Pennsylvania the distinction between legal and equitable remedies is not kept up. In the Vermont case the court is contented to dispose of the question very briefly by saying
Some other cases may be mentioned which we think are distinguishable, though in some of them a doctrine is asserted as broad as that which is maintained by the cases in Maine. Blackwood v. Jones, 4 Jones Eq., 56, was a case where one by his conduct was held estopped from asserting a lien upon lands. Besides being in equity, it may be said of the case that what was in dispute was not the title, but something supposed to encumber it. Water's Appeal (35 Penn. St., 523) was where the estoppel related to a claim to surplus moneys on a sale of lands. Stevens v. Dennett, 51 N. H., 324, was one where the doctrine was applied to the use of a well on the land of another, to which the party claimed right by user. Winchell v. Edwards, 57 Ill., 41,
The following were either cases in equity or cases in which, under permission of the statute, an equitable defense was relied upon: Wendell v. Van Rensselaer, 1 Johns. Ch., 344; Storrs v. Barker, 6 Johns. Ch., 166; Tilton v. Nelson, 27 Barb., 595; Barnes v. McKay, 7 Ind., 301; Snodgrass v. Ricketts, 13 Cal., 359; Fay v. Valentine, 12 Pick., 40; Foster v. Bigelow, 24 Iowa, 379; Junction R. R. Co. v. Harpold, 19 Ind., 350; Burns v. Taylor, 23 Ala., 255; Newsome v. Collins, 43 Ala., 656. These cases have no necessary bearing, and their correctness may be conceded. Equity may always compel the owner of the title to release it where that is the proper redress for a fraud committed by him in respect to the title; but the remedy is properly administered by compelling the fraudulent owner to convey, instead of treating the case as one of' estoppel in the strict sense.
The following were cases in which the doctrine of estoppel was applied to a voluntary adjustment of boundaries between contiguous estates: Robinson v. Justice, 2 Penn., 19; Spiller v. Scribner, 36 Vt., 245; Halloran v. Whitcomb, 43 Vt.,
The following cases havo more or less hearing on the question involved in this suit. In Jackson v. Shearman, 6 Johns., 19, 21, it is said by the court that parol acknowltedgments as to the title to real property “are generally a -dangerous species of evidence; and though good to support ..a tenancy, or to satisfy doubts in cases of possession, they ■ought not to be received as evidence of title. This Avould be to counteract the beneficial purposes of the statute of .frauds." In Jackson v. Vosburgh, 7 Johns., 186, parol ‘evidence of a disclaimer of title was rejected on the same ..ground. In Wright v. DeGroff, 14 Mich., 164, it was .decided by this court that an estoppel could not be made -out against a widoAv’s claim to dower, by shoAving that she, .as administratrix of her husband’s estate, had sold the land .and agreed to assert no claim on her oavu behalf. In Parker v. Barker, 2 Met., 423, a parol promise to release a mortgage .interest in lands Avas held inoperative, although acted upon; -the case corresponding in principle Avith the one last cited. 'The point here involved Avas directly passed upon in Swick v. Sears, 1 Hill, 17, 19. There, in reviewing a trial in tejeotmént, Bronson, J-, says: “Evidence was offered to show that the plaintiff stood by and not only saw the defendant buy of others, but advised him to do so, without disclosing the title Avliich he doav sets up. The evidence was properly rejected. The plaintiff is not estopped in a
Upon this statement of the cases it is apparent that while there are authorities both ways, it cannot be said that the weight of authority is with the ruling below, unless the cases of settlement of boundary lines and those of dedication are in point. The first have not usually been disposed of on that ground, but, on the contrary, such settlements, when acquiesced in, are supported for the very reason that they pass no title, but only define what it is that the title embraces. And surely cases of dedication are foreign to this question. A dedication is in one sense a conveyance, but it is neither within the mischiefs the statute of frauds was aimed at, nor does the statute come in question in making it out. It is a gift publicly made with tender of possession, and publicly accepted; and is as free from a likelihood of being-affected by frauds and perjuries as almost any supposable case; and it is as well made out by oral declarations as by any formal conveyance. But a grant to an individual is not suffered to be thus made; if it were it would be needless to invoke the doctrine of estoppel in support of an oral transfer. Indeed, in those cases of dedication in which estoppel is discussed, it is not strictly estoppel that is in question, but rather the right of the party to recall his gift. To treat such a question as one of estoppel, is a careless use of terms. But conceding the doctrine of estoppel to apply
The suggestion that the application of the estoppel only prevents circuity of action, is one which overlooks the distinction between legal and equitable remedies. It may be plausibly urged that no such distinctions should be kept up; but they are kept up, and until recently in this state, — as is still the case in some others, — the practice in equity has permitted some evidence to be reached which was not available at law. This is no longer the case in this state; but there is nothing in our legislation which permits cases where one claims that equitably the title or the possession of lands should be awarded to him because of the fraud of the legal owner, to be tried as common-law cases by jury. Perhaps one reason for this may be that jurors are not likely to understand and appreciate the importance of an adherence to the statute of frauds so well as those who have been educated in a knowledge of the reasons which led to its enactment; and a jury might therefore be overready to set aside titles on parol evidence of mere words or mere failure to utter words. But whatever may be the reasons, and whether satisfactory to ourselves or not, we are not at liberty to disregard the fact that the legislation of the state still leaves equitable claims to be tried in the courts of equity. And when one asserts that the owner of land ought to surrender it to him, because of the owner’s fraudulent acts and conduct, it is manifest that his claim is only an equitable claim, set up and asserted against the legal claim. The one has the legal title, and the other seeks to overthrow it by proving a superior equity. This he may be able to do in a court of equity, but we cannot admit that at law the legal title is not entitled to prevail.
Those cases in which it has been decided that a deed given by one assuming, but without authority, to be agent
But apart from all authority, the reasons against such .an application, of the doctrine of estoppel appear to us entirely conclusive. Our title deeds are supposed to bo the best possible protection to estates, and the policy of the law makes them so. They prove themselves, and the record of them is notice upon which every one may rely in bargaining for and .in acquiring lands. The law does not permit the title to rest in parol, nor does it allow any thing which is evidenced .by the deeds to be changed on parol testimony of ¡Dromises, .agreements or understandings. But by this doctrine, while the instruments of title are conceded to be indisputable, they .are allowed to be set aside on parol evidence of the owner’s .admissions or statements, though this species of evidence is •confessedly the least reliable of all which the law admits. The best evidence of title is thus allowed to be overcome and .set aside by the weakest. A conversation misunderstood or falsely reported controls the most perfect chain of convey.ances, and any estate — the most valuable in the land equally •with the most worthless — is liable to be taken from the «owner on the impression which a jury receives of the preponderance of evidence concerning words which witnesses may have imperfectly heard, or incorrectly understood, or the ^purport of which they may have unintentionally colored, or .purposely wrenched from the real meaning in the mind of the speaker. The evils against which-the statute of frauds vwas aimed are all here in their most threatening form; and .it seems to us a trifling with the statute to refuse to apply it to a case clearly within its spirit, when in order to exclude
The judgment must be reversed, with costs, and a new trial ordered.