Perea v. Martinez, 12642
| Docket Nº | No. 12642 |
| Citation | 1980 NMSC 116, 95 N.M. 84, 619 P.2d 188 |
| Case Date | November 12, 1980 |
| Court | Supreme Court of New Mexico |
Page 188
v.
Nasario MARTINEZ et al., Defendants-Appellees and
Cross-Appellants.
[95 NM 85]
Page 189
Lorenzo A. Chavez, Martin J. Chavez, Albuquerque, for plaintiff-appellant and cross-appellee.Cohen & Aldridge, Oliver Burton Cohen, Albuquerque, for defendants-appellees and cross-appellants.
PAUL SNEAD, District Judge.
Appellant Perea brought suit in Sandoval County to quiet title to 24.804 acres of land. Appellees, identified collectively as the 'Caird' group, counterclaimed seeking to quiet title to 143.473 acres of land. The land claimed by Perea bisects the land claimed by the Caird group. The lands are located on the westerly extension of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District.
The trial court found that the exterior boundaries of the lands in question did not contain the total acreage claimed by the opposing parties, and that the totaled surveyed acreage was 153.92 acres. The court resolved the problem by relocating the tract of appellant on the northern boundary of Appellee's land, splitting the shortage in land, and quieting title in appellant to 15 acres and appellees in 138.923 acres.
We reverse.
It is elementary law that in a suit to quiet title to real estate, the plaintiff must recover upon the strength of his own title and not the weakness of that of his adversary. Lerma v. Romero, 87 N.M. 3, 528 P.2d 647 (1974); Abeyta v. Tafoya, 26 N.M. 346, 192 P. 481 (1920). Appellant has failed to establish his title. Appellant's claim of title to 24.804 acres rests on a conveyance from Juan F. Chavez on April 10, 1945, containing the following description:
Sandoval County, New Mexico, Map 15, Tract 14A and mesa land.
The tract presently claimed is the 'mesa land.'
The description in the deed is inadequate to identify the particular land being conveyed. Appellant concedes the description is inadequate and seeks to remedy the deed by reference to extrinsic evidence. The evidence in support of the claim is that the grantor, at the time of conveyance, pointed out the boundaries to appellant; appellant subsequently had the land surveyed and monumented, and paid taxes on the land so identified.
Such description and extrinsic evidence is inadequate. In Komadina v. Edmondson, 81 N.M. 467, 469, 468 P.2d 632, 634 (1970), this Court stated:
The grantor's intent must be ascertained from the...
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Will of Coe, Matter of, 12434
...strength of his own title and cannot rely on the weakness of the title claimed by Page 583 [113 N.M. 362] his adversary. Perea v. Martinez, 95 N.M. 84, 619 P.2d 188 (1980); Baker v. Benedict, 92 N.M. 283, 587 P.2d 430 (1978); Esquibel v. Hallmark, 92 N.M. 254, 586 P.2d 1083 (1978). See also......
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Blumenthal v. Concrete Constructors Co. of Albuquerque, Inc., 7619
...estate, the plaintiff must recover upon the strength of his own title and not the weakness of that of his adversary." Perea v. Martinez, 95 N.M. 84, 619 P.2d 188 Defendants rely on Komadina v. Edmondson, 81 N.M. 467, 468 P.2d 632 (1970) for the following proposition: It is fundamental that ......
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Salazar v. PennyMac Mortg. Inv. Tr. Holdings I, Civ. No. 19-517 KG/LF
...must recover upon the strength of his own title and not the weakness of that of his adversary." Perea v. Martinez, 1980-NMSC-116, ¶ 4, 95 N.M. 84. In other words, a plaintiff cannot pursue a quiet title action if the plaintiff has no title or interest in the property. Gallegos v. Quinlan, 1......
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