Chamberlain v. Davis
| Decision Date | 15 September 1942 |
| Docket Number | 28855. |
| Citation | 130 P.2d 848,191 Okla. 457,1942 OK 286 |
| Parties | CHAMBERLAIN et al. v. DAVIS. |
| Court | Oklahoma Supreme Court |
Rehearing Denied Nov. 17, 1942.
Syllabus by the Court.
1. Under a statute directing the county treasurer to publish a resale notice containing the "description of the real estate to be sold", the description will be held sufficient if it is such as will enable the owner and prospective purchasers to identify and locate the land to be sold with substantial certainty, and if it is not calculated to mislead. The description need not be so detailed as to point out the exact boundaries so that a stranger unacquainted with the locality and the neighbors could find it without inquiry.
2. A resale notice which recites that the land was sold at the original delinquent tax sale to Dewey County, that the resale was to be held by the county treasurer of Dewey County in said county, and describes the land as "N W 4, 11, 18 14" with an explanation at the end of the notice that "the first figures in description of land is number of section, second figures represents the township while the third is the range as Section 23, Twp. 17, Range 14" held sufficient to show that the land is located in Dewey County and that the land described is the Northwest Quarter of Section 11, Township 18 North, Range 14 West, which is in fact situate in Dewey County.
3. A tax resale notice which recites that land will be sold at resale on April 20, 1936, for the taxes from 1932 to 1935 inclusive, and that the land has not "been redeemed for a period of at least two years" prior to the date of sale, is sufficient though the exact date of the original tax sale is not stated, in view of the curative provisions of section 12760 and 12761, O.S.1931, 68 O.S.1941 §§ 452, 453.
4. The fact that the tax resale notice recites that the land is to be sold for taxes for the years 1932 to 1935, inclusive, when in fact the 1933 taxes had been paid does not render the resale and the deed based thereon void or voidable, in view of the curative provisions of sections 12760 and 12761 O.S.1931, 68 O.S.1941 §§ 452, 453.
5. Record examined, and held that the correct amount of delinquent taxes, interest, penalty and costs due was stated in the resale notice.
Appeal from District Court, Dewey County; W. P. Keen, Judge.
Suit by O. H. Chamberlain and others against W. M. Davis to quiet title to land, wherein defendant filed a cross petition. From a judgment for defendant, plaintiffs appeal.
Affirmed.
E. S Collier, of Taloga, for plaintiffs in error.
Ruble & Boatman, of Taloga, for defendants in error.
This is an action by O. H. Chamberlain, Pearl Weaver, and others, against W. M. Davis to quiet title to 160 acres of land in Dewey County. The plaintiffs inherited the land from May Chamberlain and were the owners at the time it was sold for taxes. The defendant claims title under a resale tax deed issued pursuant to the resale held on April 20, 1936. He filed an answer and cross-petition asking that his title be quieted and for possession. From a judgment in favor of the defendant, the plaintiffs appeal.
The plaintiffs' attack upon the tax sale is based upon the contents of the resale notice, which, in so far as it is material, is as follows:
The plaintiff contends that the notice is defective in the following particulars: (1) The description is not sufficient and the notice does not recite that the land is in Dewey County; (2) the date of the original sale is not given; (3) the years for which taxes had been assessed are not given; and (4) the correct amount of taxes, interest, penalty and costs is not given.
Before taking up these objections in detail, we will first consider the law pertaining to the resale notice: Section 12754, O.S.1931, 68 O.S.A. § 413, in force in 1936, but repealed by the 1939 resale Act, directed that the resale notice as published "shall contain a description of the real estate to be sold, the name of the owner of said real estate, as shown by the last tax rolls in the office of County Treasurer, the time and place of sale, and a statement of the date on which said real estate was sold to the County for delinquent taxes, and the year, or years, for which taxes have been assessed, and that the same has not been redeemed for the period of two (2) years from the date of sale and the amount of all delinquent taxes, costs, penalties and interest accrued on the same ***".
We are committed to the rule that the curative provisions of sections 12760 and 12761, O.S.1931, 68 O.S.1941 §§ 452, 453 apply to resale tax deeds and render immaterial mere irregularities in the contents of the notice. Swearingen v. McCartan, 186 Okl. 241, 96 P.2d 1061; Henshaw v. Morris, 189 Okl. 603, 119 P.2d 85.
Bearing in mind the foregoing statutory provisions and decisions, we now examine the contentions of the plaintiffs.
1. It is not contended that the land in question was not properly described on the tax...
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