McQuin v. Rice

VALLÉE, J.

Plaintiff appeals from a minute order granting the defendant’s motion for a judgment of nonsuit at the close of plaintiff’s case in an action in equity against the answering defendant, Martha Lee Rice, as executrix of the estate of Henrietta Clemons, deceased, to establish, after the death of the alleged trustee, a resulting trust in an undivided one-half interest in a parcel of improved real estate.

The gist of plaintiff’s action is found in the allegation of the complaint that plaintiff and the deceased, Henrietta Clemons, while living together as husband and wife between the years 1938 and 1945, acquired through their joint efforts a certain parcel of real property in Los Angeles, which was conveyed to Henrietta Clemons “solely for the convenience of the plaintiff and said Henrietta Clemons, and not for any other reason, it being understood and agreed between plaintiff and said Henrietta Clemons at the time of the execution and recordation of said deed and at all times thereafter that said real property should be held in said Henrietta Clemons’ name, but as a tenancy in common between plaintiff and said Henrietta Clemons.” The complaint prays that plaintiff be decreed the owner of an undivided one-half interest as tenant

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in common in the real property, quieting the title in plaintiff to the undivided one-half interest, and for partition and sale.

The case went to trial upon the theory that by the foregoing allegation plaintiff had stated a cause of action for a resulting trust. At the close of plaintiff’s case the court granted defendant’s motion for judgment of nonsuit.

The sole question presented here is whether there is any evidence which required the denial of the motion for a judgment of nonsuit.

The facts established by plaintiff’s evidence are: Plaintiff and Mrs. Henrietta Clemons, deceased, a widow, lived together in Los Angeles as husband and wife, without benefit of a marriage ceremony, from the year 1940, until 1945, the year of Mrs. Clemons’ death. During this period both parties were employed. There is, however, nothing in the record indicating the nature of plaintiff’s employment, the place where he worked, or the amount of his earnings. The deceased was likewise employed steadily during this period until about a year before her death, when she became ill and was unable to continue working. There is nothing in the record to indicate the amount of her earnings from her employment. During the time the parties lived together meretriciously and up until Mrs. Clemons’ death, plaintiff testified that he turned over his salary or “practically all of it” to Mrs. Clemons with which “to pay bills, to take care of the bills. . . . She was paying on the house and things,” and that she always “showed him the receipts and things that she paid the bills.” In the latter part of 1943, Mrs. Clemons negotiated for the purchase of a house and lot, the subject of this action, and an escrow was opened. The record does not indicate the purchase price of the property. One of plaintiff’s witnesses testified that she thought Mrs. Clemons paid $600 down on the property. Title was taken in the name of “Henrietta H. Clemons, a widow.” As such, she executed a trust deed to the Security First National Bank of Los Angeles, to secure an indebtedness of $3,400. Both of these documents were recorded on October 2, 1943. The monthly payments on the property thereafter were $50 a month. Plaintiff testified that at the time the property went into escrow, it was agreed that it was to be owned ‘1 as man and wife. ’ ’