Coker v. Hudspeth

Decision Date22 January 1957
Docket NumberNo. 37132,37132
Citation308 P.2d 291
PartiesPauline COKER, Marilyn Faye Coker, Judith Ann Coker, Jack Coker, Harry B. Coker, Leon Coker, and Opal LeGrange, Plaintiffs in Error, v. John HUDSPETH, Defendant in Error.
CourtOklahoma Supreme Court

Syllabus by the Court

1. Where a written contract is complete in itself, and viewed in its entirety, is unambiguous, its language is the only legitimate evidence of what the parties intended. Whatever mineral interest or royalty interest is conveyed or reserved depends upon the terms of the instrument.

2. Where a written instrument clearly expresses an intendment by the parties thereto that the instrument is to convey a 1/32nd interest in the oil and gas in the land as limited by the terms of an existing oil and gas lease granting right to take oil and gas from the land reserving, as royalty a 1/8th interest to the owners of the minerals, such conveyance to the grantee is a grant of a 1/32nd of 1/8 of the oil and gas produced from the land under the terms of said lease.

Appeal from District Court of Garfield County; F. B. H. Spellman, Judge.

Action to quiet title to undivided mineral interest in real property. Defendants appeal from judgment of trial court granting plaintiff greater mineral interest under court's construction of mineral grant than he was entitled under defendants' contention as to the interest actually intended to be conveyed. Affirmed.

Elam & Crowley, McKnight & Gasaway, Enid, for plaintiffs in error.

McKeever, Glasser, McKeever & Conrad, Enid, for defendant in error.

PER CURIAM.

This action was brought by John Hudspeth, as plaintiff, in the District Court of Garfield County to quiet title under an allegation of ownership of the surface and 3012/3840ths undivided mineral interest in 160 acres of land. The plaintiff in error, who with others, were defendants in the trial court claim a greater interest in the minerals than that stated in the petition to be owned by them and appeal from the judgment of the trial court fixing their proportionate interests in a less amount. The parties will be referred to in the relative position they bore in the trial court.

The defendants are the heirs of Nellie V. Coker, deceased, and as such own in proportionate shares the mineral interest inherited from her, the exact amount owned by the decedent at her death being here in dispute and constituting the issue to be determined.

The correctness of the judgment quieting title in plaintiff in a 3012/3840ths of the minerals is to be determined by what interest was actually conveyed by plaintiff and one M. E. Doak in a certain mineral deed to a predecessor in interest of Nellie V. Coker. If the interest transferred was as determined by the trial court there was no error since there is no controversy as to the portion each of the defendants inherited in whatever interest Nellie V. Coker actually possessed.

The circumstances out of which the controversy arose may be briefly stated as follows: On February 16, 1924, James A. Harris, then owner of the 160-acre tract of land, subject to an oil and gas lease and a 10-year conveyance of 1/2 of the minerals (from 1917) conveyed his entire interest to M. E. Doak and John Hudspeth, the plaintiff, by warranty deed; on the same date the grantees executed an instrument denominated a 'mineral grant' conveying back to James A. Harris, 'an undivided one-thirty-second ( 1/32) interest in and to all of the oil, petroleum, gas, coal, asphalt and all other minerals of every kind or character in and under, or that may be produced from (description) * * *.' The deed further stated in usual terms the right of ingress and egress for mining, etc., purposes with the express provision that, 'it is understood however, that this conveyance is made subject to any valid oil or gas lease now on said premises, but covers and includes the said undivided interest of grantee in and to all of the oil royalty, delay rentals, or gas rentals or royalty due, or to be due, under the terms of said lease; and when said lease expires, or for any reason becomes forfeited or inoperative before it expires, then in either event the said undivided interest of the grantee in and to said minerals in and under said land shall be owned by the grantee herein'; the Sinclair Oil & Gas Co. at the time of the conveyance owned an oil and gas lease on the property which provided for the usual 1/8th part of the...

To continue reading

Request your trial
5 cases
  • Hensley v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co.
    • United States
    • Supreme Court of Oklahoma
    • June 20, 2017
    ...parties will be given great, if not controlling weight, when the written language is ambiguous on its face.). See also Coker v. Hudspeth, 1957 OK 15, 308 P.2d 291, 294 (when a deed possesses an element of uncertainty, parol evidence, the admissions of the parties, and other extraneous circu......
  • Bredouw v. Jones
    • United States
    • Supreme Court of Oklahoma
    • May 10, 1966
    ...and is unambiguous, oral evidence tending to vary, contradict, enlarge, or narrow the terms of the writing is not admissible. Coker v. Hudspeth, Okl., 308 P.2d 291; Enola Oil Company v. Bogie, Okl., 290 P.2d It is the position of the defendants that the contemporaneous oral agreement betwee......
  • Messner v. Moorehead
    • United States
    • Supreme Court of Oklahoma
    • February 27, 1990
    ...parties' intention must be ascertained solely from the language used in the conveyance. 15 O.S.1971 §§ 154, 155. See also, Coker v. Hudspeth, 308 P.2d 291 (Okl.1957); Murphy v. Athans, 265 P.2d 461 (Okl.1954); Jennings v. Amerada Petroleum Corp., 179 Okl. 561, 66 P.2d 1069 (1937). When a de......
  • In re Public Leasing Corporation
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (10th Circuit)
    • December 14, 1973
    ...Pavers Co., 106 R.I. 178, 256 A.2d 514, 517, 518. 5 To the same effect see Garrett v. Pollock, Okl., 299 P.2d 516, 519, and Coker v. Hudspeth, Okl., 308 P.2d 291, 294. ...
  • Request a trial to view additional results

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT