Halman v. Bullard

• Decision Date: 17 June 1954
• Docket Number: 5 Div. 546
• Citation: Halman v. Bullard, 261 Ala. 115, 73 So.2d 351 (Ala. 1954)
• Parties: HALMAN v. BULLARD.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Page 351

73 So.2d 351

261 Ala. 115

HALMAN v. BULLARD.

5 Div. 546.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

June 17, 1954.

McKee & Maye, Opelika, for appellant.

Walker & Walker, Opelika, for appellee.

LIVINGSTON, Chief Justice.

Mrs. Clementine Rice, a widow, departed this life in Lee County, Alabama, on July 14, 1951. She was approximately 84 years of age, and was not survived by a husband, parent, children, grandchildren, brothers or sisters. The complainant, Harvey Halman, and respondent, J. F. Bullard, are nephews of said decedent.

On April 5, 1951, Mrs. Clementine Rice executed and delivered to the said J. F. Bullard a deed conveying to him certain real estate located in Lee County, Alabama. The deed was acknowledged before a notary public, Hon. William L. Dickinson, and whose notary certificate is dated July 14, 1951, which is the date of the grantor's death. The deed was filed for record on July 17, 1951, three days after the grantor's death, in the office of the Judge of Probate of Lee County, Alabama.

At the time of the execution of the deed in question, Mrs. Rice owned an undivided three-quarter interest in 60 acres of land described in the deed. Harvey Halman, the complainant in the court below, owned an undivided one-quarter interest in said land.

On July 23, 1951, Harvey Halman filed his bill of complaint, in equity, in the Circuit Court of Lee County, Alabama, against J. F. Bullard to have said deed set aside on the ground of the mental incapacity of the grantor and the exertion of undue influence upon the grantor by the grantee.

Demurrer to the bill of complaint as last amended was overruled.

All testimony was taken orally before the judge in open court as provided by Equity Rule 56, Code 1940, Tit. 7 Appendix.

This appeal is taken from the final decree of the trial court which denied the relief prayed for and dismissed complainant's suit.

The deed in question purports to have been signed by the grantor by mark.

In his answer to the bill of complaint, as amended, respondent not only alleged that he was a purchaser in good faith and for a valuable consideration, but set out that the consideration for the deed to him was his agreement to live with the grantor, Mrs. Rice, for the balance of her natural life and to care for her until she died.

On July 14, 1951, and for several years prior thereto, the said deceased grantor had been in very bad health and almost totally confined to her bed. Appellant's evidence is to the effect that the deceased was non compos mentis and mentally incapable of executing a valid deed during those years. Evidence directly to the contrary, however, was introduced by the appellee.

For approximately two and a half years prior to Mrs. Rice's death, complainant's sister, Mrs. Ella Ennis, had, without compensation, lived with and cared for said grantor. Complainant had frequently visited Mrs. Rice and his sister, and had substantially contributed to their support.

The evidence tends to show that the respondent, J. F. Bullard, did not visit the deceased grantor prior to 1951 during the aforesaid two and a half-year period. He had contributed nothing to Mrs. Rice's support or welfare.

During April 1951, however, respondent and his wife moved into the decedent's small home. The evidence indicates that Mr. and Mrs. Bullard and Mrs. Ennis did not care for each other in the least. The evidence clearly shows that Mrs. Ennis feared that the Bullards would gain title to the land in dispute. Because of the presence of the respondent and his wife, Mrs. Ennis left Mrs. Rice's home on April 8, 1951, and never returned before the latter's death. Appellee and his wife remained in the home with the decedent from April 8, 1951 until the decedent's death on July 14, 1951. During that period, Mrs. Rice was completely dependent upon the Bullards.

On July 14, 1951, at approximately 2:00 p. m., the execution, by mark, of the deed in question was effected. The evidence shows that Mrs. Rice became seriously ill that evening at approximately 7:00 p. m. She died at 9:00 p. m Three issues are presented on this appeal. First: Was the decedent, Mrs. Clementine Rice, mentally incapable of executing a valid deed on July 14, 1951? Secondly: Was undue influence exerted upon the grantor by the grantee or the latter's wife? And finally: Is the decree of the trial court contrary to the great weight of the evidence?

In our opinion, all three questions must be answered in the negative.

The evidence has been considered with great care. No good purpose can be served by setting it out in detail to any greater extent than has already been stated. Beasley v. Beasley, 248 Ala. 690, 29 So.2d 232. A detailed discussion would be useless; a statement of our conclusions must suffice.

I. Upon the question of mental capacity, the law presumes every one to be sane until the contrary is proved. It is unsoundness of mind and incapacity to understand the business transacted, as contradistinguished from mere weakness, which must be proved in order to avoid a conveyance. Harris v. Bowles, 208 Ala. 545, 94 So. 757. Similar language is stated in Frederic v. Wilkins, 182 Ala. 343, 62 So. 518, wherein it was said the law requires nothing more than that the grantor should have sufficient mental capacity to fairly understand the nature and consequences of the act in question.

Furthermore, the burden of proof is upon the party attacking a conveyance to show the alleged incapacity of the grantor at the very time of the transaction. Hall v. Britton, 216 Ala. 265, 113 So. 238. Should proof of insanity prior to that time be shown, such does not raise the presumption of insanity at a subsequent time, unless it is shown that the insanity is permanent in nature. Hall v. Britton, supra.

We have assiduously studied the evidence offered by the respective parties upon this question, and are persuaded that Mrs. Rice fully understood the nature and consequences of the deed in question when she made her mark through the aid of Dickinson. Having in mind the advantage possessed by the trial court in estimating the intelligence and credibility of the several witnesses and the value of their testimony, we cannot say that the application of the above-stated principles of law to the evidence required the trial court to find that Mrs. Rice was contractually non compos mentis when she executed the deed on July 14, 1951.

II. The relation between J. F. Bullard and Mrs. Rice was that of aunt and nephew. Nothing in this relationship of itself creates a confidential relation. Abrams v. Abrams, 225 Ala. 622, 144 So. 828. Also, the evidence does not show that either J. F. Bullard or his wife exercised dominance over the will of the grantor. It does not appear that any fraud, artifice, or imposition was practiced upon, or any unconscionable advantage taken of, Mrs. Rice by the appellee or his wife to bring about the execution of the deed.

The witness Dickinson testified that just prior to the time Mrs. Rice executed the deed he heard Mrs. Bullard state the following to the grantor:

'Aunt Tine, the lawyer is here to sign the deed. You know you have been after us for months to get the...