Davis v. Mueller

In 1991, Virginia Cope conveyed her mineral and royalty interests in 10 tracts of land in Harrison County, Texas to JD Minerals, owned by James Davis (collectively, Davis) (defendant). The conveyance document contained a vague description of the 10 tracts and a general grant stating that Cope conveyed all of her Harrison County mineral and royalty interests to Davis. The conveyance document also contained a Mother Hubbard clause stating that Cope would subsequently convey any small parcels accidentally omitted from the original conveyance. In 2011, Cope conveyed to Mark Mueller (plaintiff) the same Harrison County mineral interests that Cope had conveyed to Davis in 1991. Mueller filed a quiet-title action against Davis, arguing that the 1991 conveyance had violated the statute of frauds, and was therefore invalid, because it had failed to describe the conveyed tracts with sufficient specificity. Davis countered, arguing that although the description of the 10 tracts was vague, the general-grant clause was sufficiently clear to satisfy the statute of frauds and convey valid title. The trial court granted Davis summary judgment and entered a take-nothing judgment against Mueller. Mueller appealed, arguing that the general grant was ambiguous because it covered a large area and because it appeared together with a Mother Hubbard clause. The appellate court found that there were outstanding issues of material fact and reversed the summary judgment. Davis appealed to the Texas Supreme Court.