Jacobson v. Gulbransen
| Decision Date | 14 March 2001 |
| Docket Number | No. 21266, No. 21289. |
| Citation | 2001 SD 33,623 N.W.2d 84 |
| Parties | Garry W. JACOBSON, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. Jeffrey L. GULBRANSEN and Carol L. Gulbransen, Defendants and Appellants. |
| Court | South Dakota Supreme Court |
Steven J. Oberg and Robert Gusinsky of Lynn, Jackson, Shultz & Lebrun, Rapid City, SD, Attorneys for plaintiff and appellee.
Frank Driscoll and Michael V. Wheeler of DeMersseman Jensen, Rapid City, SD, Attorneys for defendants and appellants.
[¶ 1.] Jeff and Carol Gulbransen (Gulbransens) appeal from a judgment in a civil action tried to the court. The trial court concluded that there was an enforceable agreement between Gulbransens and Garry Jacobson (Jacobson) for the sale of land and ordered Gulbransens to convey the land to Jacobson. On appeal, Gulbransens contend that there was no agreement between the parties or, alternatively, that the statute of frauds bars enforcement of the agreement. We affirm.
[¶ 2.] Jacobson and Gulbransens are landowners in the Black Hills of South Dakota. They own land abutting on the south and north sides, respectively, of a parcel of land outside of Keystone, South Dakota that once belonged to the United States Forest Service. The Forest Service sold the property to Gulbransens in July 1997 in accordance with 16 USC § 521(c) et seq. These provisions permit the sale of small, difficult to manage parcels of land when the sale is in the public interest. The Forest Service conditioned the sale of any such parcel upon approval by all contiguous landowners.
[¶ 3.] Mr. Gulbransen contacted the Forest Service in 1993 after learning of the possibility of purchasing the parcel at issue in this appeal. Told that all adjoining landowners would have to approve the sale, Gulbransen contacted his immediate neighbors while the Forest Service contacted other adjoining landowners including Jacobson and John Kinkead. Jacobson objected to the sale and reported his objections to the Forest Service. Jacobson had used two existing roads across the parcel for access to a remote portion of his own property and as an alternate egress route in case of a forest fire. To preserve these uses, Jacobson preferred that the land not be sold or developed.
[¶ 4.] The Forest Service informed Gulbransens of Jacobson's objections and directed that the objections be resolved before Gulbransens' application to purchase the land would be considered. Gulbransens were also informed that, unless the objections were resolved before March 31, 1994, the District Ranger would recommend to the Forest Supervisor that the land not be sold.
[¶ 5.] Gulbransen arranged a meeting with Jacobson and Kinkead to discuss their objections. At that meeting, he showed them a rough topographical map the Forest Service had given to him that depicted the area in question. The three men discussed the proposed sale and which piece of the parcel of land each of them would want if the sale took place. Asked to identify the piece he wanted, Jacobson pointed out a window of Gulbransen's house that faced south and indicated that was the land he wanted. Gulbransen mentioned that he and his wife wanted the five acres nearest their land and also mentioned their concerns about financing the purchase of such a large parcel of land. At the time of this discussion, the size of the parcel was thought to be around thirty acres. A later survey revealed it was only about twenty acres.
[¶ 6.] Subsequently, Gulbransen drew up and signed a document that he sent to Kinkead, Jacobson and another adjoining landowner. The document read:
This is to confirm agreement on the sale/transfer of property from the Small Tracts Act case # 0207 to (name). At this date, exact surveys are not known or located, however I will convey areas sought by the McNulty's, Kinkead's and Mr. Jacobson. (McNulty's seeking areas between their property and Kinkead's, Kinkead's below their home to gate to mine, and Mr. Jacobson property located on the South end of the tract.) Property will be located and sold to requesting parties at sale price obtained from the Forest Service plus price of survey and cost of mineral claims located on said property. I am in agreement with requests and will work with adjacent landowners to satisfy their requests.
Upon receiving this document, Kinkead inserted a detailed description of the land he sought, signed it and forwarded it to the Forest Service. Jacobson signed the agreement and forwarded it to the Forest Service without any addition to the description of the land.
[¶ 7.] The Forest Service completed the sale of the land to Gulbransens in July 1997. Some months later, Gulbransen and Jacobson met to walk the land and to set the boundary, but were unable to agree on the land to be conveyed to Jacobson. This suit followed with Jacobson seeking specific performance against Gulbransens.
[¶ 8.] The trial court found Gulbransen was not a credible witness based on both the substance of his testimony and his demeanor. However, it found Jacobson was a very credible witness. With respect to the sale, the trial court determined it was in Jacobson's self-interest to maintain the status quo and that he withdrew his objections to the sale out of courtesy to Gulbransen and in reliance upon the agreement between the parties. Additionally, the court determined Gulbransen refused to convey the land because the final size of the parcel was smaller than expected and thus, financing was less of an issue for him. In addition, land values had increased dramatically during the period between the initial negotiations and the time for conveyance.
[¶ 9.] Based upon the evidence and testimony, the trial court concluded there was an agreement between the parties to convey the south end of the parcel consisting of all but five acres retained by Gulbransens and other small parcels requested by other neighbors. The court decreed specific performance of this agreement. The original judgment also awarded attorney's fees as damages. The trial court subsequently vacated this judgment and entered an amended judgment denying the attorney's fees.
[¶ 10.] Gulbransens appeal the trial court's finding of an agreement for the conveyance of land and its decree of specific performance. By notice of review, Jacobson challenges the court's denial of attorney's fees.
[¶ 11.] Our review begins with the findings of fact and a determination of whether the findings support the conclusions of law. Unless shown to be clearly erroneous, a trial court's findings of fact will not be disturbed. Geraets v. Halter, 1999 SD 11, ¶ 12, 588 N.W.2d 231, 233. Conclusions of law are reviewed de novo. Id. at 234.
[¶ 12.] There was an enforceable agreement between the parties.
[¶ 13.] The trial court's determination that there was an agreement between the parties was based on the evidence and testimony presented at trial. When, as here, the court's conclusions are so grounded, they will be reviewed with great deference. See e.g., Jeschke v. Wockenfuss, 534 N.W.2d 602, 604 (S.D.1995)
().
[¶ 14.] The trial court found Jacobson and the reasons given for his conduct were more credible than Gulbransen and the reasons supplied for his conduct. Because these findings are sufficiently based on the evidence and because the trial court is in the best position to judge the credibility of witnesses and to resolve disputes of fact, they will not be disturbed.
[¶ 15.] To be enforceable under South Dakota's statute of frauds, a contract for the sale of land or some memorandum of the agreement must be in writing.
SDCL 53-8-2. If the writing is a memorandum, it must describe the land, the price and the parties to the contract. Amdahl v. Lowe, 471 N.W.2d 770, 774-775 (S.D.1991). It is not necessary that it provide a precise description of the land. Id. at 775. To be sufficient, the description must merely be clear enough for extrinsic evidence to precisely identify the land. Id. "A general description of the land which is the subject of the contract is sufficient, and parol evidence may be admitted to provide the more particular description." Id. There is no dispute that the memorandum confirming the agreement for the sale of property was signed by Gulbransen and Jacobson. This writing meets the requirement of the statute of frauds that there be written evidence that the parties reached an agreement.
[¶ 16.] Gulbransen argues that the description of land in the memorandum was indefinite or uncertain and that this resulted in an unenforceable agreement. The memorandum described the land to be conveyed to Jacobson as "the south end of the tract" and stated that, "I [Gulbransen] will convey areas sought by ... Mr. Jacobson." The memorandum concluded with the statement that, "I am in agreement with their requests and will work with adjacent landowners to satisfy their requests." The trial court also allowed parol evidence of the parties' discussion to more precisely identify the parcel to be conveyed and all parties testified as to the land constituting that parcel. The trial court found Jacobson to be a very credible witness and found Gulbransen was not credible "based on the substance of his testimony as well as his...
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