Court Opinion

ID: 9623808
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 06:43:57.361993+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:05:34.963078
License: Public Domain

Andrews, Judge,
concurring in part and dissenting in part.
While I fully concur with Divisions 1 and 2,1 respectfully dissent as to Division 3, as I do not believe Cowart v. Singletary, 140 Ga. 435 (79 SE 196) (1913) and Decatur North Assoc. v. Builders Glass, 180 Ga. App. 862 (350 SE2d 795) (1986) support the conclusions drawn from them, but do believe that the non-assignment clause here precluded assignment.
Cowart originated as an equitable action seeking, among other equitable relief, to require Grimsley, the holder of legal title to real estate by virtue of a warranty deed from Holmes, to execute a deed to Singletary, the holder of equitable title by virtue of a warranty deed from Cowart who held by a bond of title from Holmes, the bond issuing before the warranty deed to Grimsley. The bond for title contained the non-assignment clause reading “[a]nd it is further stipulated that this bond is not transferrable to any one.” The case was referred to an auditor who found in favor of Singletary, affirmed by the trial court and reviewed and affirmed by the Supreme Court. As stated by that court, the question posed was “[i]f the insertion of such a stipulation [non-assignment clause] in the bond for title rendered the conveyance by [Cowart] to Singletary absolutely void, so that he acquired no right thereunder and no equity arose in his favor by reason of the payment of a large part of the purchase-money to Mrs. Holmes, and so that Mrs. Holmes could make a conveyance to Grimsley, receiving from him the balance of the purchase-money, less what Singletary had paid, and so that Grimsley could convéy a life-interest in half of the land to Caroline Cowart, and Singletary could thus be entirely left out and would have no equitable right whatever, then the finding of the auditor and the decree of the court were wrong.” Cowart, at 440-441.
It was determined that Grimsley took his deed with actual notice of the bond for title, and that Grimsley’s and Cowart’s arguments rested upon “one or all of three contentions:” (1) the bond was analogized to a conveyance in fee simple in which there could be a limited and reasonable restriction upon alienation; (2) the bond was analogized to a chose in action which was not assignable at common law, but is now and was then assignable by statute; and (3) the bond was considered a contract and Holmes had the right to provide with whom she desired to deal and the contract should not be assignable. Id. at 441-442. The opinion then states that “[bjefore taking up each of these contentions separately, it may be well to note that, strictly speaking, there was no transfer of the bond, but that [Cowart] made a warranty deed to Singletary.” Id. at 442. (Emphasis supplied.) *783Thus, whatever interest Cowart eventually took would transfer to the grantee, Singletary, unless Cowart was entitled to rely upon her agreement with Holmes, who had been fully compensated, not to transfer Cowart’s rights under the bond to defeat a warranty deed which Cowart executed.
The court rejected the first two proffered analogies, then discussed the third, resulting in our present disagreement. The court recognized two categories of contracts, the first involving personal services, skill, science or qualifications which are not assignable even in the absence of a non-assignment clause.
The provision of Cowart relied upon on page 781 of the majority is apparently the discussion of the remaining class of contracts, executory contracts. The majority states the rule in Cowart to be that in otherwise assignable contracts, where one party has performed thereunder “so that the contract is no longer executory, its right to enforce the other party’s liability under the contract may be assigned without the other party’s consent even if the contract contains a non-assignment clause.” (Emphasis supplied.) All of the cases then cited deal only with the transfer of title to land in cases where the vendor has received full payment for the property, holding only legal title thereto, while the original purchaser holds equitable title which he may freely convey. The Georgia cases cited contain no non-assignment clauses and the foreign cases, which we choose not to follow, likewise deal only with real estate sales where the vendor of the real estate was relying on the non-assignment clause in refusing to transfer legal title, having received full payment. That a court of equity may choose to rely on such a situation to grant equitable relief to the purchaser and his assignee does not equate to the broad principle announced by the majority which would apply to all types of contracts.
Finally, as noted by the Cowart court, the maker of the stipulation, Holmes, while named as a party to the suit, had died and no administrator was appointed to represent her in the case, neither did she in her lifetime attempt to enforce the stipulation. That Cowart is restricted to real property transfers is supported by Perkins v. Rhodes, 192 Ga. 331, 333 (1) (15 SE2d 426) (1941) which cites it as an example of the principle that the maker of a deed is estopped from denying his right to convey after-acquired title to real property. See also Rucker v. Corbin, 188 Ga. App. 182, 183 (372 SE2d 512) (1988).
Neither does Decatur North support the position taken, since the contract there also contained no non-assignment clause. I believe this case is indistinguishable from Mingledorff’s, Inc. v. Hicks, 133 Ga. App. 27 (209 SE2d 661) (1974) and the non-assignment clause is valid.
*784Decided July 16, 1991
Reconsideration denied July 31, 1991
Ralph G. McCallum, Jr., for appellant.
Alembik, Fine & Callner, G. Michael Banick, for appellee.