150 Iowa 604 | Iowa | 1911
The plaintiff is the widow of George E. Hutchinson, who died in 1904. Her husband became the owner of an interest in the land in question by virtue of a contract for its purchase from the Iowa Kailroad Land Company and took possession thereof. He afterward assigned his contract, and his assignee paid for the land and took title thereto in 1876. The plaintiff made no relinquishment of her statutory interest in the land, and the defendants are holders under the purchasers from the railroad company. This is the second appeal in this case; the opinion on the first appeal is reported in 186 Iowa, 346. The original petition was filed on February 2, 1906. A demurrer to said petition was sustained generally, and, upon appeal to this court, it was held that .the demurrer was rightly sustained, because the petition did not allege that the defendants were purchasers with notice of the plaintiff’s claim. A rehearing was asked, but it was denied on the 19th of November, 1907. On the 3d of February, 1908, the present petition was filed, in which it was alleged that the defendants and their grantors were purchasers with notice of the rights and claims of the plaintiff. The defendants answered, pleading a former adjudication and the statute of limitations. Those pleas were held good, and the plaintiff’s action was dismissed. Whether there 'was a former adjudication we need not determine, because we are of the opinion that the present action is barred.
The Thirty-first General Assembly passed an act, which is now section 3447b, Code .Supp. 1907, providing as follows, so far as material here: “In all cases where the holder of the legal title to real estate situated within this state, prior to the first day of January, 1885, conveyed said real estate or any interest therein by deed, mortgage or other conveyance, and the spouse failed to
The appellant contends that section 3447b is not controlling, for the reason that the plaintiff’s husband was not the owner of the legal title to the land; that his interest was only an equity, evidenced by a contract of sale which he afterward assigned. While the statute under consideration uses the words “legal title,” we do not think the Legislature intended to limit its effectiveness to cases where the spouse had in fact taken a deed. A deed is not always necessary to convey legal title. “As applied to real estate, title is generally defined to be the means whereby the owner of lands has the just possession of his property.” 28 Am. & Eng. Enc. of Law, 232. Title is said to be'“the lawful cause or ground for possessing that which is ours.” Hunt v. Eaton, 55 Mich. 365 (21 N. W.
In her reply argument, the appellant attempts to apply section 3455 to the facts of this case, but as no reference thereto was made in the. opening argument, we can not, under the rules, consider it.
We reach the conclusion that this action was barred, and the judgment is affirmed.