Court Opinion

ID: 9712609
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 04:57:08.908717+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:23:13.262015
License: Public Domain

BURKE, Judge
(concurring specially).
I concur in the result reached in the opinion of the Chief Justice. Conceding that N. W. Simon originally acquired title to the land in litigation as trustee for his coad-venturers, he fulfilled his obligations under the trust when he and his wife executed a deed of an undivided one-tenth interest to each of them and delivered the deed to William Larson. Upon the delivery of this deed N. W. Simon became a tenant in common with his nine associates. When the deed was delivered it was with the understanding that Larson was to pay the taxes. Larson, however, neither paid the taxes nor recorded the deed and the land was sold to the county for taxes in 1930.
N. W. Simon died in 1933, and his heir Clarence Simon, succeeded to his interest in the land. In 1940, the county perfected its tax title to the land by giving notice of the expiration of the period of redemption from tax sale, and upon the expiration of such period, by issuing a tax deed to the property. Upon the issuance of this tax deed the entire title to the property passed to the county. Buman v. Sturn, 73 N.D. 561, 16 N.W.2d 837; Pederson v. Federal Land Bank, N.D., 72 N.W.2d 227. The interest of each of the cotenants in the property was thus terminated and the cotenancy ended.
In 1946, Clarence Simon as a member of the immediate family of N. W. Simon, the former record owner of the land, repurchased the land from the county, under the privilege granted by Section 57-28-19 NDCC. It is conceded that, at the time Clarence repurchased the land, the record showed that N. W. Simon was the former owner. It is also conceded that Clarence Simon had no knowledge of the deed executed by his father and mother to N. W. Simon and the other adventurers, nor any other knowledge of the cotenancy created by that unrecorded deed. His good faith is unchallenged. Where a cotenancy has ended a former cotenant may acquire sole title to the property at tax sale in the absence of fraud, collusion or other inequitable conduct. Patterson v. Wilson, 203 Okl. 527, 223 P.2d 770. The fact that Clarence Simon had, without knowledge on his part, been a cotenant of the land did not bar him from acquiring the entire title thereto after the cotenancy had terminated.
Assuming, without deciding, that Clarence Simon had no right to repurchase more than his father’s actual former interest in the land and not the entire interest as shown by the record and that the county’s deed was void as to all but the one-tenth interest his father had actually owned, nevertheless, the county deed was color of title to the entire tract described therein. A void tax deed is color of title. Stiles v. Granger, 17 N.D. 502, 117 N.W. 777, Power v. Kitching, 10 N.D. 254, 86 N.W. 737; Urbanec v. Urbanec, 43 N.D. 127, 174 N.W. 880; Grandin v. Gardiner, N.D., 63 N.W.2d 128.
It is undisputed that under this col- or of title Clarence Simon entered upon this land more than ten years prior to the commencement of this action and that he, and after his death, his widow have been in continuous open and advei'se possession of the land and have paid all taxes and assessments levied thereon. The defendants, DeMaris Simon individually, and as general guardian for Ronald V. Simon, widow and son of Clarence Simon, have therefore perfected their title to the land under the provisions of Section 47-06-03 NDCC. The judgment of the District Court should therefore, be affirmed.
STRUTZ, MORRIS and TEIGEN, JJ., concur.