T. W. ALDERMAN, APPELLANT,
v.
ORLANDO CITRUS GROWERS ASSOCIATION, WACHOVIA BANK & TRUST COMPANY, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS EXECUTOR OF THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF E. D. VAUGHN, DECEASED, AND LULA H VAUGHN, APPELLEES
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
T. W. Alderman appealed the dismissal of his bills of complaint seeking to have Orlando Citrus Growers Association declared a constructive trustee and to recover properties lost through foreclosure of purchase money mortgages. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal, finding no fraud or equity to support Alderman's claims.
The bills of complaint failed to state a claim for equity because they were grounded on fraud but the transaction was not infected with fraud, the foreclosures were regular and timely unchallengeable, and nothing subsequent to the final decree and sale supported fraud allegations or a new cause of action.
“Both bills oí complaint were grounded on fraud but an examination of them does not convince us that the transaction was infected with' fraud.”
Establishes that the court found no fraud despite Alderman's allegations, which was fatal to his claims.
Previewing 1 of 2 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAlderman purchased two tracts of land with purchase money mortgages and later executed a second mortgage to Morris Plan Company. He was a member of Or…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Constructive Trust cases and more on FLexlaw
Appellant purchased two tracts of land and executed a purchase money mortgage on each tract. He. later executed a second mortgage to the Morris Plan Company of Tampa on the same lands. He was a member of and executed a crop lien describing said lands to Orlando Citrus Growers Association, a cooperative marketing association.
In September, 1938, the holders of the purchase money mortgages brought suits to foreclose. Final decrees were entered and sale was held in May, 1939. The lands were purchased at the sale by the purchase money mortgage holders, the sale was confirmed and master’s deeds duly issued. The purchasers conveyed the properties to the Orlando Citrus Growers Association which executed mortgages to the original purchasers.
In September, 1939, appellant filed his original bill of complaint to have Orlando Citrus Growers Association declared to be a constructive trustee and to be the holder of the properties in trust for appellant. The bill also prayed for an accounting against appellee because it had marketed appellant’s fruit previous to the foreclosure. The original and the amended bill later filed were dismissed for want of equity and this appeal was prosecuted. Error is assigned for dismissing both bills of complaint and for dismissing them as to certain parties but the real question is whether or not either bill of complaint stated equity.
*460Both bills oí complaint were grounded on fraud but an examination of them does not convince us that the transaction was infected with' fraud. The record shows that appellant had become involved on past-due obligations for various purposes, that the foreclosures were in all respects regular and were not challenged at the time, that since the final decree and sale nothing has transpired on which fraud can be predicated or that will support a new cause of action.
True appellant claims that he had been bereft of a potential equity in the lands but if foreclosures were permitted to be relitigated in the manner proposed here, they would never end.
Affirmed.
Buford, Thomas and Adams, J. J., concur.
Justices Whitfield, Brown and Chapman not participating as authorized by Section 4687, Compiled General Laws of 1927, and Rule 21-A of the Rules of this Court.