Tax Deed Validity

175 Florida cases classified under this topic · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Stieff v. Hartwell
  35 Fla. 606· Fla.· 1895-01-01 ·cited 18×
  In this ejectment action to recover property in Orlando, the Florida Supreme Court reversed the trial court's judgment for the defendant and ordered a new trial. The court upheld the plaintiff's state and county tax deed while finding the defendant's city tax deed fatally defecti
• Cremin v. Quigley
  104 Fla. 133· Fla.· 1932-01-29 ·cited 17×
  Margaret Cremin appeals the dismissal of her bill seeking to set aside a 1916 decree quieting title in Reeder based on a tax deed issued to Reeder's predecessor. The court held that Cremin, who was of unsound mind at the time of the original suit, had statutory protection allowin
• Grissom v. Furman
  22 Fla. 581· Fla.· 1886-06-01 ·cited 17×
  In this ejectment case, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's judgment in favor of the trustee against the defendant's claim based on a tax deed. The court held that a tax deed with reversed township and range numbers is void because it fails to describe land actua
• Salls v. Martin
  156 Fla. 624· Fla.· 1945-12-04 ·cited 16×
  In this ejectment action arising from a property sale at a tax foreclosure, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's directed verdict for the plaintiff and rejected the defendant's defenses based on adverse possession and a statutory bar to the action.
• Townsend v. Lot W. Edwards
  25 Fla. 582· Fla.· 1889-06-01 ·cited 16×
  This case concerns the validity of a tax deed used to claim ownership of a town lot. The appellate court found that the lower court erred in admitting the tax deed and in refusing to admit evidence showing the land was not assessed for taxes, ultimately reversing the judgment.
• Lovett v. Shore
  139 So. 194· Fla.· 1931-12-21 ·cited 15×
  In these companion ejectment cases, the Florida Supreme Court held that when a tax deed is adjudged void and the amounts owed to the tax deed holder are determined in the ejectment suit itself, the court must stay execution of the ejectment judgment until the successful plaintiff
• D.R.L., Inc. v. Murphy
  508 So. 2d 413· Fla. 5th DCA· 1987-05-07 ·cited 14×
  D.R.L., Inc. appeals a summary judgment quieting title in the Murphys for platted lots within Government Lot 7 based on tax deeds issued after the Murphys failed to pay 1977 property taxes. The court holds that the tax deeds are valid despite the reference to a "wild" subdivision
• Gilliam v. Will R. Saunders
  200 So. 2d 588· Fla. 1st DCA· 1967-06-20 ·cited 14×
  A Florida appellate court reversed dismissal of a complaint challenging the validity of a tax deed, holding that statutory requirements for filing proof of publication of notice before issuing a tax deed are mandatory, not merely directory, and therefore jurisdictional.
• Booth v. Bd. of Pub. Instruction of Dade Cnty.
  67 So. 2d 690· Fla.· 1953-10-30 ·cited 14×
  Cora Alice Booth sued to quiet title to two parcels of Dade County property, claiming ownership through tax deeds from 1916 and 1918. The Board of Public Instruction of Dade County obtained summary judgment quieting title in itself, but the Florida Supreme Court reversed, finding
• Taff v. Hodge
  132 Fla. 642· Fla.· 1938-06-06 ·cited 14×
  The Florida Supreme Court affirmed a lower court's decision quieting title for a tax deed holder. The court held that a tax deed, if regular, extinguishes prior title, and subsequent claims can be challenged as clouds on the tax title. The court also found that minor defects in t
• Saddler v. Reddin Smith
  54 Fla. 671· Fla.· 1907-06-01 ·cited 14×
  Reddin Smith sought to set aside tax deeds and leases that he claimed clouded his title to land in Taylor County, Florida. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's rejection of defendants' motion to quash service of process and demurrer, holding that the tax deed was
• Daniel v. Taylor
  33 Fla. 636· Fla.· 1894-01-01 ·cited 14×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a judgment in a title dispute, holding that a void tax deed—assessed under an invalid assessment and without proper advertisement—conveyed no title to the tax purchaser or his assignee, and therefore could not defeat the ownership rights of the
• Clements v. Starbird
  152 Fla. 555· Fla.· 1943-03-19 ·cited 13×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a lower court decision that invalidated a tax deed, holding that the procedures used to levy and assess taxes on special school district property complied with statutory requirements, and that county commissioners had authority to issue refundin
• Porter v. Eliza Carroll
  84 Fla. 62· Fla.· 1922-06-30 ·cited 13×
  In this ejectment action, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed judgment for Eliza Carroll against D. E. Porter, holding that a tax deed issued to W. C. Foster was void because the property had not been properly assessed for taxation in 1913, and therefore Porter acquired no valid t
• Woodford v. Seigmore Alexander
  35 Fla. 333· Fla.· 1895-01-01 ·cited 13×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a lower court's decision granting an injunction against timber cutting on disputed swamp lands in Marion County. The court held that the complainants, who lacked actual possession of the wild, unoccupied lands, could not obtain equitable relief
• Almon v. Sandlin
  603 F.2d 503· 5th Cir.· 1979-09-26 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the plaintiff's complaint failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted and was an improper collateral attack on state court judgments.
• Vinson Ates and Minnie Ates v. Yellow Pine Land Co.
  310 So. 2d 772· Fla. 1st DCA· 1975-02-25 ·cited 12×
  Vinson Ates obtained a tax deed to 20 acres in 1941 and claimed ownership through adverse possession against St. Regis Paper Company and Humble Oil & Refining Company. The court held that Ates' adverse possession ripened into fee simple title to the entire estate, including sever
• Leacy S. Lehew v. Larsen
  124 So. 2d 872· Fla. 1st DCA· 1960-12-06 ·cited 12×
  A quiet title action where the trial court granted summary judgment for the plaintiff before the defendant filed an answer. The appellate court reversed, holding that summary judgment should not be granted before the defendant has the opportunity to answer unless it is clear that
• Mirabella v. Kickliter
  113 So. 2d 397· Fla. 2d DCA· 1959-06-12 ·cited 12×
  Appellant Mirabella sued to quiet title to property inherited from her deceased father, but the defendants DuBose obtained a tax deed and prevailed on their counterclaim. The court reversed because the tax deed application was premature under the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Reli
• Thompson v. The City OF KEY W.
  82 So. 2d 749· Fla.· 1955-03-16 ·cited 12×
  The Florida Supreme Court upheld tax assessments against the estate of Norberg Thompson, rejecting challenges based on allegedly deficient property descriptions and procedural irregularities. The court found that even though the tax roll descriptions were confusing and imprecise,
• Adolph Goodman v. Carter
  158 Fla. 112· Fla.· 1946-11-08 ·cited 12×
  Adolph Goodman, who held a tax deed to property issued in 1944, sued to quiet title against defendants who had subsequently recorded quit claim and fee simple deeds dated January 1946. The defendants challenged the tax deed's validity on multiple grounds. The Florida Supreme Cour
• Henderson v. Boose
  142 Fla. 804· Fla.· 1939-08-01 ·cited 12×
  Julia Henderson, as trustee of her deceased husband's estate, challenged a tax deed issued by Goulds Drainage District for drainage district taxes on property the estate owned. The Florida Supreme Court held that the tax sale and deed were void because they violated statutory req
• Downing v. Carlton
  76 Fla. 490· Fla.· 1918-11-19 ·cited 12×
  Downing brought an action to quiet title to forty acres of land based on a tax deed. Carlton filed a cross-bill asserting superior title through a warranty deed chain from the Internal Improvement Fund and contending that Downing's tax deed was void because the clerk failed to pr
• Townsend v. Brown
  69 Fla. 155· Fla.· 1915-02-16 ·cited 12×
  In this ejectment action over a tax deed, the Florida Supreme Court held that the statutory requirement for publication of tax sale notice "once each week for five consecutive weeks" means five publications in five consecutive weeks (giving approximately four weeks notice), not a
• Porcher L'Engle v. Wilson
  21 Fla. 461· Fla.· 1885-01-01 ·cited 12×
  This case concerns the validity of a tax deed used to claim ownership of land. The court held that a tax assessment made to an "estate" rather than a specific owner or occupant is void, as it fails to comply with statutory requirements for tax assessments.
• Susye Belle Wells v. Jefferson Thomas
  89 So. 2d 259· Fla.· 1956-04-18 ·cited 11×
  Wells challenges a summary judgment decree quieting title in favor of the Savage heirs, who claimed the tax deed under which Wells held title was invalid due to defective notice. The Florida Supreme Court affirms the invalidity of the tax deed as to the Savage heirs' property due
• W. Coast Lumber Co. v. Griffin
  56 Fla. 878· Fla.· 1908-06-01 ·cited 11×
  West Coast Lumber Company purchased land from intermediate grantees without notice of prior unrecorded deeds. The Florida Supreme Court reversed the lower court's cancellation of the defendant's deeds, holding that a good faith purchaser without notice is protected against unreco
• Logan v. Stieff
  36 Fla. 473· Fla.· 1895-06-01 ·cited 11×
  Margaret Logan purchased land through mortgage foreclosure and sought to cancel a tax deed held by George Stieff, claiming it was a cloud on her title. The trial court dismissed her bill based on prior litigation between Stieff and the original mortgagors (the Harringtons), but t
• Evans v. Ireland
  707 So. 2d 1135· Fla. 2d DCA· 1998-02-11 ·cited 10×
  Evans, holder of tax certificates, obtained a tax deed to Florida property after the Property Appraiser corrected a clerical error that had mistakenly listed the wrong owners on the tax roll. The trial court voided the tax deed, finding a due process violation in the notice proce
• Spike von Zamft & GMMR, Inc. v. S. Fla. Water Mgmt. Dist.
  489 So. 2d 779· Fla. 2d DCA· 1986-04-30 ·cited 10×
  Von Zamft appealed a summary judgment that quieted title to land in the South Florida Water Management District, holding his tax deed void because taxes were erroneously assessed while the District owned the property. The court affirmed the judgment but remanded for clarification
• Clark v. Johnson
  91 Fla. 485· Fla.· 1926-03-12 ·cited 10×
  George A. Clark challenged a bill to quiet title filed by A. B. Johnson based on a tax deed. The Florida Supreme Court reversed, holding that Johnson's tax deed was void because Johnson acquired it while acting as Clark's tax-paying agent, which constitutes fraud against the owne
• Avery v. Dime Lock
  55 Fla. 612· Fla.· 1908-01-01 ·cited 10×
  In this ejectment action, the Florida Supreme Court reversed the trial court's judgment for the defendant and ordered a new trial, holding that the evidence did not clearly and satisfactorily establish adverse possession for the statutory seven-year period because the testimony r
• Spaulding v. Ellsworth
  39 Fla. 76· Fla.· 1897-01-01 ·cited 10×
  The court reversed a lower court's decision to sustain a plea, holding that the statute of limitations for challenging a tax deed begins to run from the execution and delivery of the deed, not from the date of the tax sale. This ruling clarifies when a former owner must initiate
• Conant v. August Buesing
  23 Fla. 559· Fla.· 1887-06-01 ·cited 10×
  In this equity suit, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a decree removing a cloud on the complainant's title created by a tax deed. The court found that the underlying taxes had been paid before the tax sale, rendering the sale and subsequent tax deed void, and that the complainant
• L'Engle v. Fla. Cent. & W. R.R. Co.
  21 Fla. 353· Fla.· 1885-01-01 ·cited 10×
  L'Engle sought to eject the Florida Central and Western Railroad from a Jacksonville water lot based on a tax deed. The court held that the tax assessment underlying the deed was void because the property was assessed to W.L. Seymour, who was neither the owner nor occupant, and t
• Donald v. McKinnon
  17 Fla. 746· Fla.· 1880-06-01 ·cited 10×
  The court reversed a judgment for the plaintiff in an ejectment action, finding that the trial court erred in excluding evidence crucial to the defendant's tax deed defense. The case clarifies the requirements for a valid tax deed and the proof needed for a justice of the peace j
• Elmore S. Bailey v. Folks
  182 So. 2d 477· Fla. 1st DCA· 1966-02-10 ·cited 9×
  Bailey, who held a recorded tax deed and was listed as the last taxpayer, challenged a 1960 tax deed issued by the clerk after the clerk mailed notice to different persons named on the tax roll instead of to Bailey. The court held that the statute requiring notice to the 'owner'
• Van Valkenburg v. Rhodes
  136 Fla. 406· Fla.· 1938-04-14 ·cited 9×
  This case concerns the validity of a tax deed issued for taxes assessed against an estate. The appellate court affirmed the lower court's decision to exclude the tax deed as evidence, finding the assessment invalid.
• Platt Cattle Co. v. Stott
  157 Fla. 286· Fla.· 1946-04-12 ·cited 8×
  In this ejectment action, the Florida Supreme Court upheld the trial court's judgment awarding possession of Florida land to Ray and Noy Stott based on a tax deed, rejecting the defendant cattle company's challenges to the validity of the tax deed issuance and transfer procedures
• Tindel v. W. N. Griffin and wife
  157 Fla. 156· Fla.· 1946-03-08 ·cited 8×
  Appellant Tindel sought to vacate a tax deed issued to Griffin on a 1941 tax certificate, alleging various statutory irregularities in the tax deed issuance process. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's dismissal, holding that under Florida law the tax deed was va
• Muskogee Cnty. v. United States
  133 F.2d 61· 10th Cir.· 1943-01-06 ·cited 8×
  Federal acts exempting Indian homesteads purchased with restricted funds from state taxation are constitutional and apply even if the Indian owns other tax-free land.
• Holliday v. Wade
  117 F.2d 154· 5th Cir.· 1941-01-31 ·cited 8×
  The court held that a mortgage foreclosure suit is not barred by adverse possession statutes applicable to suits for title or possession, but the purchasers of tax-deeded property are entitled to reimbursement for taxes paid and improvements made.
• Katharine S. Bauman v. Healy
  141 Fla. 478· Fla.· 1939-05-30 ·cited 8×
  In this mortgage foreclosure case, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed a decree finding that a tax deed acquired by the sister of a first mortgagee was subject to the equities existing between the first mortgagee and the foreclosing second mortgagee, even though the sister had tak
• Lizzie R. Johnson v. Smiley A. Baker and Joseph H. Burke
  73 Fla. 6· Fla.· 1917-01-15 ·cited 8×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a trial court's decision sustaining a demurrer to a bill in equity seeking to quiet title to land. The court held that the bill's allegations were sufficient to survive demurrer, particularly regarding the plaintiffs' ownership and the defects i
• Johnson v. Ada DuPont
  63 Fla. 200· Fla.· 1912-01-01 ·cited 8×
  This case concerns the validity of a tax deed used as the basis for title in an ejectment action. The court affirmed the lower court's decision, holding that the plaintiff's tax deed was valid and the defendant's tax deed was invalid due to procedural defects.
• Saunders v. Collins
  62 Fla. 273· Fla.· 1911-06-01 ·cited 8×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a judgment awarding damages for trespass where the defendant's title was based on a tax deed. The court held that the tax deed was void because the statutory requirement for thirty days of newspaper publication notice before issuance was not sat
• McRae v. Preston
  54 Fla. 190· Fla.· 1907-06-01 ·cited 8×
  In an ejectment action for a town lot in Lakeland, Florida, the plaintiff recovered a judgment with mesne profits. The defendant appealed via writ of error, challenging the verdict. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, finding that the plaintiff's undisputed possessio
• Ropes v. Minshew
  47 Fla. 212· Fla.· 1904-01-01 ·cited 8×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed a lower court's judgment in an ejectment action. The court found the judgment erroneous because the verdict and judgment described the land in a different range than the one stated in the original declaration, and the bill of exceptions was too
• Watson v. Holliday
  37 Fla. 488· Fla.· 1896-01-01 ·cited 8×
  Thomas Watson sought to remove a tax deed as a cloud on his title to real estate, but the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of his bill because he failed to allege either possession of the land or that it was wild and unoccupied—a jurisdictional requirement for cloud-r
• Clark v. Hollingsworth
  138 Fla. 2· Fla.· 1939-05-12 ·cited 7×
  Clark purchased invalid tax sale certificates and sought to enforce a lien against the property despite the tax deed issued from those certificates being void due to procedural defects. The Florida Supreme Court held that Clark, as the purchaser of valid tax certificates, retains