Brief Fact Summary. The Plaintiffs, Mr. and Mrs. Willard (Plaintiffs), sued to quiet title regarding an easement they did not believe existed on the property. The Defendant, First Church of Christ, Scientist, Pacifica (Defendant), contended that they were granted an easement, which was in the deed prior to the conveyance to the current owners.
Synopsis of Rule of Law. A grantor may in a deed to real property, reserve an interest in that property for third parties.
Issue. Whether a grantor may, in deeding real property to one person, reserve an interest in that property for a third party.
Held. Reversed. The court abandoned the old common law rule of rejecting conveyances that vest interests in third parties and held that in the case, such a reservation vests the interest in the third party.
The courts primary objective in construing a conveyance is to give effect to the intent of the grantor and is to be interpreted in the same way as other contracts.
In order to determine whether a court should apply the old common law rule to grants made prior to the courts decision, a balancing of equitable and policy considerations must occur. The court should examine the injustice of refusing to give effect to the grantor’s intent versus the result of failing to give effect to an individual’s reliance on the old common law rule and policy against disturbing settled titles.
While a reservation could theoretically vest an interest in a third party, the early common law courts vigorously rejected this possibility, apparently because they mistrusted and wished to limit conveyance by deed as a substitute for livery by seisin.
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