Brill v. Stiles

Citations

• 35 Ill. 305

Syllabus

<p>1. Equitable title—what constitutes. A purchaser of land by agreement, acquires an equitable title, when he has completed his part of the contract, by paying the purchase-money, and receiving written evidence of the agreement of the vendor to convey the premises.</p> <p>2. Same—may he asserted in equity. Such a title may always he asserted in a court of equity against the holder of the legal title, whether in the vendor or his vendee, with notice.</p> <p>3. Same—not availing at law. But at law, a merely equitable title is not regarded, and is unavailing for a recovery or defense against the legal title.</p> <p>4. Same—acquired hy purchase from the government. When a party purchases land from the government, by entry in the proper office, in pursuance of law, and receives a certificate of purchase therefor, he acquires the equitable title to the premises to the same extent that he would by a purchase from an individual owning the fee.</p> <p>6. Construction of title derived from the government. In determining upon the validity of a title derived from the government, the same rules apply as when derived from an individual</p> <p>6. Priority as between afumar amd elder patent or certificate of entry, how determined. In equity, a junior patent from the government, or a register’s certificate of entry, will prevail over the elder one, if the right on which it is based is prior in point of time, to that upon which the elder patent or certificate is founded.</p> <p>1. So a certificate of entry will prevail, in equity, over a patent based upon a subsequent entry, unless the prior entry has been legally vacated.</p> <p>8. Vacating an entry—powerof the commissioner of the general land office. The mere fact that an entry has been declared void by the commissioner of the general land office does not have the effect of vacating the entry. He is not a judicial officer, and has no power to decree the rescission of contracts. His determination in reference to the validity of a s