Spates v. Brewer

WHITE, J. This is an appeal by plaintiff from a judgment for defendants in an action to establish a trust in certain real property. The suit was instituted by Harry Spates against the executors of the estate of his deceased wife, Chancey Spates, and the beneficiaries under her will. Upon the death of Harry Spates pending the appeal, his administrator was substituted as plaintiff and appellant.

In the amended complaint it was alleged, in substance, that between 1935 and 1945, Harry Spates advanced to his wife various sums approximating $5,000, which sums were community property of the parties, for the purpose of acquiring the real property in dispute; that title to the property was taken in the name of the wife solely for convenience, and that in fact the property was community. The prayer of the complaint was that plaintiff be adjudged the owner of a one-half interest in such property and that defendants be declared constructive trustees thereof.

The sole ground upon which a reversal is sought is that the evidence is insufficient to sustain the findings and [662]decision of the trial court. Harry Spates testified that in the latter part of 1936 he and his wife contemplated purchasing the property in question; that the owner thereof refused to sell to a negro, but that Mrs. Spates, “she being so fair, there was no question about her”; that Mrs. Spates said that “she would sign over the community deeds” when the property was paid for; that she told him on several occasions she would put the property in his name; that he gave his wife all the money he made after they married; he would give her hundreds of dollars at a time; that he sold his car for $500 and gave her that to apply on the monthly payments on the property.

Contradicting plaintiff’s testimony, however, it was brought out that at the time of the marriage, Mrs. Spates owned as her separate property a residence in San Francisco and income property in Petaluma from which she received a substantial income; that at the time of the purchase of the" property in question she had a term savings account; that at or about the time the down payment of $2,536.35 was made, she withdrew $2,400 from the savings account. The payments made on the property, at the rate of $90 per month, were all made by checks drawn by Mrs. Spates on her separate commercial account in a branch of the Security-First National Bank. No payments were made by plaintiff. The deed named as grantee “Chancey Spates, a married woman, as her sole and separate property. ’ ’ The grantor, Mr. Butterworth, testified that the property was not restricted against the colored race, and that whether the buyer was white or colored had no influence on him in making the sale. Harry Spates did not at any time demand that his wife convey him an interest in the property. He could not name any specific sum which he claimed to have given his wife nor the dates upon which he had given her any sums, with which to purchase the property. He produced no receipts or cancelled checks. Mrs. Spates told her granddaughter that the property was hers (Mrs. Spates’). She gave the deed to her daughter for safekeeping.