Nelson v. Nelson

CURTIS, J.

This action is between a brother and sister. The suit involves the ownership of two tracts of land situated in the county of Yolo. The land formerly belonged to the brother. While such owner, and on or about December 11, 1926, the brother executed two deeds of the said land in favor of his sister. It is contended by the plaintiff that these two

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deeds, with a power of attorney executed by him to his sister at or about the same time the deeds were executed, were executed and delivered by him to his sister for the purpose of enabling her to secure a loan upon said real property with the proceeds of which she was to discharge indebtedness of the plaintiff to various persons, included in which was a judgment against said plaintiff which was then a lien against said two parcels of land. After securing said loan, and the discharge of plaintiff’s said indebtedness, so the plaintiff claims, the defendant was to reconvey said land to the plaintiff. The plaintiff further contends that his sister, after acquiring title to said lands by means of said deeds, did obtain loans, which were secured by liens upon said land, and from the proceeds of said loans, and from the rents, issues and profits derived from said real property since she acquired title thereto, has paid off the indebtedness, including said judgment lien for which the plaintiff was liable at the time he conveyed said real property to the defendant, and has collected further rents, issues and profits from said lands in the amount of $60,000, which sum defendant has appropriated to her own use, and, furthermore, that she has repudiated her agreement to rcconvcy said lands to the plaintiff, and claims the same as her own property.

On the other hand, the defendant contends that due to the fact that plaintiff was deeply in debt and was about to lose said real property by reason of his indebtedness, including the judgment which was a lien upon said real property at the time the plaintiff conveyed the same to her, plaintiff solicited and importuned the defendant to accept said deeds to said real property as conveyances of the absolute title thereto to the defendant and as her sole and individual property free from any claim or right of plaintff thereto; that in response to this request of the plaintiff, defendant agreed to and did thereafter accept conveyances to said real property, which were absolute in form, and which were intended to and which did transfer the legal title to said real property to the defendant as her sole and individual property, free from any right therein of the plaintiff, and that on acquiring title to said real property defendant paid and satisfied the indebtedness of the plaintiff, and as the said real property had been sold under execution issued