Blackwell v. Sewall

• Decision Date: 26 January 1967
• Docket Number: 1 Div. 380
• Citation: 280 Ala. 359,194 So.2d 519
• Parties: Clyde W. BLACKWELL v. Edward D. SEWALL.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Page 519

194 So.2d 519

280 Ala. 359

Clyde W. BLACKWELL v. Edward D. SEWALL.

1 Div. 380.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

Jan. 26, 1967.

Scott & Porter, Chatom, for appellant.

Adams, Gillmore & Adams, Grove Hill, for appellee.

HARWOOD, Justice.

Edward D. Sewall, suing by his guardian, Mavis C. Fincher, filed a bill against Clyde W. Blackwell and Jackson Bank & Trust Company seeking to have a deed executed by Sewall to Clyde W. Blackwell canceled on the ground that Sewall was mentally incompetent to complete such transaction or to convey his real estate.

The original bill was filed immediately after an abortive lunacy proceeding had been held in the Probate Court of Clarke County, to declare Sewall mentally incompetent. This lunacy proceeding was set aside for failure to notify Sewall of such proceeding, and another lunacy hearing was had in January 1964.

The Jackson Bank & Trust Company was named as a respondent in the present proceedings in that Blackwell had borrowed money from the bank to purchase the Sewall land and had given a mortgage on the land in question to secure the loan.

The respondent-appellant, Blackwell, filed his answer denying the essential allegations of the bill and also filed a crossbill praying that his deed from Sewall be declared valid and that Sewall owned no further interest in the property.

The deed sought to be canceled was executed and delivered on 17 July 1963.

Innumerable witnesses were introduced by both sides in the hearing below resulting in a rather voluminous record. The cause was submitted to the court for final decree on the merits, on the pleadings, testimony taken orally in open court, depositions, and documentary evidence. Thereafter the court entered a decree to the effect that:

'The Court is satisfied from the evidence that on July 17, 1963, Edward D. Sewall did not have sufficient mental capacity to understand in a reasonable manner the nature and effect of the deed which he executed on that date, purporting to convey to Clyde W. Blackwell the lands described therein and in the bill of complaint, and that he was therefore mentally incapacitated to make such deed; the Court is further satisfied from the evidence that Clyde W. Blackwell was a nephew of Edward D. Sewall, had known him intimately throughout the lifetime of the said Clyde W. Blackwell, and that the said Clyde W. Blackwell therefore had notice of the mental incapacity of the said Edward D. Sewall; wherefore, the aforesaid conveyance should not be permitted to stand; * * *'

The court then ordered, adjudged, and decreed that the deed in question be canceled, annuled, and set aside.

The evidence presented by the complainant-appellee in the proceedings below tends to show that Edward D. Sewall, whose nickname is 'Dime' was at the time of the proceedings below about 74 years of age. Edward had two bachelor brothers, Louis and Toy, and after the death of their parents many years ago, the three brothers lived together. Edward was crippled to some extent and under the appellee's evidence seems to have been childish and to an extent mentally deficient. During all of his adult life his two brothers looked after him and upon the death of Louis, his brother Toy continued this arrangement until his death in 1961. Under the testimony of appellee's witnesses, Edward never transacted any business for himself, and relied entirely upon his brothers who purchased his clothes for him and all of his other needs and sought to protect him in every manner.

After Toy's death in 1961, Edward slept in the Sewall home for two or three weeks but took his meals and spent most of his time in the home of his sister, Mrs. Clements, who lived two or three hundred yards distant. After two or three weeks he moved over to the home of Mrs. Clements and remained there until Mrs. Clements' death in 1963. It appears that Mrs. Clements looked after and cared for Edward until her death.

Clyde Blackwell was a nephew of Edward, and had known him intimately all of his life. Blackwell testified that after the death of Toy Sewall, Edward had approached him three times with a proposal that Blackwell buy his property and look after him. However, at the previous hearing Blackwell had testified that it was he who proposed the purchase, and that Edward had told him he would study about it and let him know. He also testified at this previous hearing tht he had told Edward he would come over and live with him and that he had moved in with Edward and was living with him at the time of the previous hearing. In his testimony in the trial below Blackwell stated he did not agree to move in with Edward and had not done so.

Blackwell testified that Edward later asked him what he would pay for the property and Blackwell told him he would pay him $10,000.

In July 1963, Blackwell brought Edward to Grove Hill and employed Mr. W. Johnson McCall, a practicing attorney, to prepare and supervise the execution of a deed by Edward conveying to Blackwell all of Edward's land. In this connection Mr. McCall testified that in his opinion Edward knew what he was doing, and he considered him of sound mind, though this was his first contact with Edward. Mr. McCall was not informed of the consideraton for the deed, nor how it would be paid.

After the deed had been executed Blackwell took Edward to the Jackson Bank & Trust Company where Blackwell had arranged to borrow the $10,000 purchase price. Edward, being crippled, did not go in the bank but remained outside in an automobile. Blackwell told Mr. Nichols, president of the bank, that Edward wanted to deposit the $10,000 in a joint account in the name of Edward Sewall and Clyde Blackwell and also wanted to transfer into the joint account some $9,000 that was in a checking account in Edward's name. Mr. Nichols prepared the necessary papers and Blackwell took them out to the automobile where Edward signed them. Thus $16,000 was placed in a joint savings account in the name of Edward Sewall and Clyde Blackwell, and $3,000 placed in a joint checking account of Sewall and Blackwell.

According to Mavis C. Fincher, who was later appointed guardian for Edward, she and her husband went to the home of her mother, Mrs. Clements, to spend a weekend in November 1963. According to Mrs. Fincher, the following took place:

'A * * * after I entered the house Dime walked up and came in. His personal appearance at that time was as bad as I have ever seen him look. He has a habit of picking his fingers, and he was constantly picking his fingers. I asked him how he felt and he says, 'I ain't no good.' I said, 'What's wrong?' And he says, 'I don't have a place to live.' I further questioned him and I said, 'What do you mean you don't have a place to live?' And he says, 'Well, they got my property.' I said, 'Who is they?' And he didn't say anything for several minutes. He moved over closer to me and he said, 'I wish I had not done this.' I said, 'What are you talking about, Dime?' He said, 'Buster and Dixie got my property.

'Q Who is Buster?

'A Buster is Clyde Blackwell.

'Q Who is Dixie?

'A Dixie is Clyde's father.

'Q All right, go ahead.

'A He then told me that they talked him into it and he says, 'I am going to have to do something.' I said, 'What do you mean you have got to do something?' He said, 'Well * * *' one of his common phrases is 'I Gannies'--now you can figure that out, I can't. He says, 'I Gannies I can't stay up there any longer.' I said, 'Do you want some help?' He said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Do you want your property back?' He said, 'Yes.' I said, 'What about your money?' He says, 'I ain't got no money.' I asked him about the money. He was very vague in his reply. I gathered from what he said, he pulled his bill fold out, and to Dime that is all the money he has is what he has on his person. He didn't seem to realize that he had any money other than what he had in his possession.'

At Edward's request Mrs. Fincher accompanied Edward to the office of Mr. John Adams, an attorney in Grove Hill. Mr. Adams accepted a check from Edward for $100.00 as a retainer. Mr. Adams prepared for Edward's signature, and mailed to the bank, an instrument directing the bank to restore the savings account to Edward Sewall's name alone. He also wrote Blackwell a letter requesting that he confer with him about the matter. Three or four days later Blackwell brought Edward to Mr. Adams' office where Blackwell informed Mr. Adams, with Edward's acquiescence, that he wanted the original deed to stand.

While in the hearing below Blackwell could not remember what conversation had been had in Mr. Adams' office in reference to Mr. Adams' pointing out to him that Edward could have authorized Blackwell to sign checks for him without making a joint account, with Blackwell being the owner of the deposits upon Edward's death. Nevertheless in the previous hearing to revoke the adjudication of lunacy, he had recalled that such facts had been pointed out to him.

After the conference in Mr. Adams' office, Blackwell then took Edward to the bank where Edward signed another document directing the bank to disregard the cancellation of the joint accounts and to again place the accounts in the joint names of Edward Sewall and Clyde Blackwell.

Thereafter Mr. Adams filed for Mrs. Fincher a proceeding for a lunacy inquisition upon Edward Sewall. While the sheriff certified service of papers upon Edward, actually no service was had. This was not discovered until after Edward had been adjudged non compos mentis on 6 December 1963. This decree was set aside and a new hearing set for 10 January 1964, of which Edward did have proper notice.

Blackwell engaged and paid Mr. McCall to appear in Edward's behalf and resisted the adjudication, and participated with Edward in the hearing. Edward was again adjudged a non compos mentis on 10 January 1964.

Blackwell then took Edward to Mobile on 6 February 1964, for an examination by a Dr. Claude L. Brown, a psychiatrist, and after an...