Luthi v. Evans

• Mrs. Owens possessed interests in oil & gas leases in Coffey County, Kansas.
• In 1971, Owens & her co-owners executed & recorded a deed assigning their interests to International Tours Incorporated ("Tours") (defendant).
• The assignment described 7 oil & gas leases to Tours; plus, the assignment contained a Mother Hubbard clause
• In addition to the aforementioned leases, Mrs. Owens retained an interest for herself in an oil & gas lease known as Kufahl lease (also in Coffey County).
• However, Mr. Evans ("Evans") owned an over-riding royalty interest in the Kufahl lease (that Mrs. Owens claimed to own).
• In 1975, Owens assigns her Kufahl interest to Mr. Burris ("Burris")
• Before the assignment to Burris, he conducted a title search in Coffey County; moreover, the abstract of the deed for Burris didn't show Tours' interest in the Kufahl lease
• At this juncture, (1) Tours, (2) Burris & (3) Evans claim competing interest in the same plot of land (that is, the Kufahl lease)
• The successors in interest in the Kufahl lease were named Luthi.
• Luthi claimed to possess superior interest in the title to the other parties.

• Luthi filed a lawsuit to quiet title amidst competing claims over the same Kufahl lease.
• The trial court ruled in favor of Burris, subject to Evans's royalty interest
• The trial court concluded that Evans was an innocent purchaser for value (bona fide purchaser) who hadn't been on notice of Tours's prior interest in the Kufahl lease because of the Mother Hubbard clause
• Tours appealed to the Kansas Court of Appeals where Burris lost

Does a Mother Hubbard clause in a real property conveyance put a subsequent purchaser (Burris) of an interest in the property on constructive notice of the prior conveyance?

A Mother Hubbard clause that doesn't provide a sufficiently detailed description of the property conveyed fails to provide constructive notice to a subsequent purchaser (Burris & Luthi).

Reversed

Justice Prager: Burris later acquired a superior interest in the Kufahl lease as an innocent bona fide purchase & without notice of the assignment to Tours

Property_Dukeminier/Outline#Luthi_v._Evans