Opinion ID: 2634745
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Quiet Title Claim Remains Pending

Text: ¶29 Wilshire argues that the Andersons' request for an order quieting title remains pending for two reasons. First, the district court did not intend to dispose of this issue. In support of this argument, Wilshire directs us to language in the district court's order, where the district court states that it is dismissing only that portion of the Petition that asserts a wrongful lien. (Emphasis added.). Wilshire further relies on the district court's statement that the dismissal does not deal with the issue of quiet title. ¶30 Second, Wilshire argues that, even if the district court intended to dispose of the quiet title claim, it did not have the authority to do so at the summary lien proceeding because the Wrongful Lien Act specifically prohibits district courts from determining any property or legal rights of the parties other than whether a lien is wrongful. See Utah Code Ann. § 38-9-7(4). ¶31 We conclude that the district court's intent is irrelevant as to the quiet title claim because the court did not have the authority to dispose, whether directly or indirectly, of that claim at the summary lien proceeding. As noted above, a court may dispose of an issue without directly addressing it if the court's determination of one or more issues effectively prevents a party from moving forward with other claims. See Bowles, 652 P.2d at 1346; Barton, 872 P.2d at 1038. In this case, at the time the district court issued its order, it had authority only to decide whether Wilshire's trust deed was a wrongful lien as defined by the Wrongful Lien Act. Nevertheless, we recognize that the district court could have effectively disposed of the Andersons' additional claims that were predicated on a finding of a wrongful lien. ¶32 The Andersons argue that the district court effectively disposed of their quiet title claim because a wrongful lien is an essential element of that claim. We disagree. ¶33 The district court's determination that Wilshire's trust deed was not a wrongful lien, as defined by the Wrongful Lien Act, did not necessarily dispose of the Andersons' quiet title claim because the presence of a statutory wrongful lien is not an essential element of a quiet title claim. A quiet title claim is brought by a party to determine that party's interest in real or personal property when another party has made an adverse claim to that property. Utah Code Ann. § 78-40-1 (2002). The party may assail the adverse claim for any . . . legal reason that would render the claim invalid and is not limited to those grounds available under the Wrongful Lien Act. Doyle v. W. Temple Terrace Co., 135 P. 103, 105 (Utah 1913); see also Utah Code Ann. § 38-9-1(6). ¶34 Thus, the district court's dismissal of the portion of the Andersons' Petition that asserts a wrongful lien did not dispose of the quiet title action by determining the Andersons' rights to the property, nor could it have, because such a claim may not be addressed in a summary proceeding. Instead, the partial dismissal was merely a determination that Wilshire's trust deed was not a wrongful lien as defined by the Wrongful Lien Act. ¶35 Furthermore, the Andersons retained the option of challenging the lien on other grounds at a full hearing. Although a lien may be deemed valid when the analysis is focused exclusively on the three wrongful lien factors contained in the Wrongful Lien Act, and therefore not subject to nullification in a summary proceeding, a petitioner may nevertheless prevail after a full hearing by demonstrating some other basis for invalidating the lien. For example, it may be that the lien was (1) obtained by fraudulent means, (2) executed by a grantor who lacked mental competency, (3) signed under duress or undue influence, or (4) the result of mutual mistake. 9 Thompson on Real Property, § 82.12(a)-(e) (David A. Thomas ed., 2d Thomas ed. 1999); see also Harmston v. Harmston, 680 P.2d 751, 752 n.1 (Utah 1984) (noting that a deed may be set aside in equity where the grantor has been induced by fraud or undue influence). ¶36 Accordingly, we conclude that the district court's summary determination that the lien was not wrongful under the Wrongful Lien Act does not qualify as a final order because it fails to completely resolve all pending claims.