Swann v. Carson

MARKS, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment quieting title to property in Riverside County, Plaintiff claims title • under a tax deed from the State of California. Defendants either are the original owners or deraign title from them.

[503]

Plaintiff has filed no brief and has made no argument in this court. At the trial he introduced in evidence the deed from the state and rested. He evidently relied on subdivision 7 of section 3897 of the Political Code which provides in part as follows:

“A deed given by the tax collector upon a sale made as in this section provided shall convey title to the purchaser free and clear of all liens, taxes, assessments or encumbrances of any kind or character whatsoever levied or assessed or liened on the property which are due at the time of such sale so conveyed prior to the date of such sale, and, except as against actual fraud, such deed duly acknowledged shall be prima facie evidence of the regularity of all proceedings from the assessment of the assessor to and including the execution of such deed.”

The legal effect of this provision does not seriously differ from that contained in section 3898 of the Political Code in effect at the time of the decisions of the cases which we will consider here.

The precise question was considered in

County Bank

v.

Jack,

148 Cal. 437 [83 P. 705, 113 Am.St.Rep. 285], except that the decision was based on the provisions of section 3898 of the Political Code. The plaintiff attempted to prove its title by the introduction of the deed from the state. In reversing a judgment for the plaintiff the court, after quoting from section 3898 of the Political Code, said:

“This does not go so far as the respondent contends. It cannot be allowed to have the effect of operating as proof of the execution of a previous deed whereby the title of the taxpayer had been transferred from him to the state. It would be most extraordinary if it had been intended to provide that proof of such divestiture of title to property could be made by the mere