Beardsley v. Clem

CHIPMAN, C.

Rescission. Defendants had judgment, from which plaintiffs appeal on the judgment-roll alone.

The original plaintiffs were Clarence L. Beardsley and Grace M. Beardsley, his wife. Defendants were husband and wife. Aftér a demurrer had been sustained to the complaint, and pending demurrer to the amended complaint, plaintiff Clarence died, and plaintiff Grace was substituted as administratrix of her husband’s estate, and a supplementary and amended complaint was filed, which was answered, and the cause was tried by the court on these pleadings.

Plaintiffs owned a ten-acre tract of land near Redlands, and defendants owned a ten-acre tract near Downey. They exchanged deeds on December 1, 1898, pursuant to a verbal agreement previously entered into. On the night of November 30, 1898, a house which stood on defendants’ land was destroyed by fire.

The court found the following facts: That at the time the deeds were exchanged each of the parties believed that the dwelling-house on defendants’ land then existed; that the existence of said dwelling was an inducement to plaintiffs and a part of the consideration moving to them in the transaction; and that had plaintiffs known of the destruction of the house

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they would not have made the exchange. On December 19, 1898, plaintiffs Grace and Clarence Beardsley served upon defendants a written notice of rescission and demanded a reconveyance of the land deeded to defendants by plaintiffs, which was refused by defendants. The land deeded by defendants to plaintiffs was “not of equal or nearly equal value with the lands deeded” by plaintiffs to defendants, “but the exchange as effected was not effected in any incompetency” (sic,—referring probably to an allegation in the complaint that Beardsley was

non compos mentis),

and was not inequitable or unjust. Prior to December 19, 1898, and after December 1st, defendants placed permanent improvements on the land deeded to them of the value of $358, for which they paid that sum, and among these payments was $25 paid to plaintiff Clarence Beardsley for fertilizing material used on said land, and he “knew of the destruction of said house when he received said $25.” Defendants had no notice or information that plaintiffs were dissatisfied with the exchange of lands until December 19, 1898. Defendants have collected $110.45 for insurance on said house so destroyed by fire.