518 SIMMONS -1). SIMCO. [192 • SmtmoNs v. Smco. 4-4241 Opinion delivered March 30, 1936. 1. .bEEDs.-:A.fter a, deed has been executed, acknowledged and de-., livered, .thn title is , vested in the grantee, and there is nothing the grantOr can do io divest the' title o4 hiUi s ; a grantor has no right-to change a deed after delivery, : thbugh the'deed'be a gift. 2. REFORMATION. Where a grantor makes changes:in . a deed after its • delivery, the grantee,is entitled to have the deed reformed so as to read as . it did originally. • APpeal from Crawford ' Circuit Conti ;'1: . 0.. Kincaii-no4t, Jtidge ; affirmed. • Lonnie' Batehelor, for appellants. Partdi4 & A'gee, fel.. a . p . pe . llees. MEHAFTY, • J. On . February , 18, 1924, .A1- Sinaco , and his wife, Lena Sim* executed . and delivered, to tbeir son; Tom Sinaco, a deed conveying the property . therein de-, scribed. to said Tom Simco. The . undisputed .facts show that the. doed was executed, and . delivered fo Tom Simco and that he immediately wentinto possession of the.land
SIMM'ONS v. SIMCO. 519 cOnveyed: SOme time there;after he deliveied tha deed to his 'mother for- 'safekeeping. , It, had' not' been recorded'. 'The- original deed; conveyed the' property to Tom; Simco.in fee 'simple, • and ; after • the deed was , ;delivered to , ' MrS. Sinico ;for safekeeping, ; Mrs. Simco . teStified that her hus,- band, suggested; : that . 'Would; like te , have • Mr. Stockard look oVer it,• and sOffie lime later he . broughf it back.' She did not look at the deed then, and did not know it was not . justlice,it was when, .shesigried , it, until , Tom had a chanoe ; that . during . all, , that time . Tom was in po . ssession property.,, • She , testified .. .that the erig-inal deeel was a warranty ,acknewl-edged, and that, the words; :",and,,the. heirs of his body," was not ,in the deed.when..she signed it.. • ; Al Simco, father ;of Torn. Simce, testified' that he and his Wife . ; exectited., the, deed, .and acknoWledged :it. before Alfred. Creekmore , and that 'Tem went into Possession of the -property.; ; Ha alse.thstified; that he obtained the deed frora:his,Wife; toOk :it to-Mr: Steckard,. and that Stookard said, something. about the childremmightmeed it some day, and .Mr. Stockard juSt, put intO the deed , the words , and the, heirs; of his body." !lie testified. that-this was ;some time after. the deed was executed and, given. to Tom" ; and after he; had gone: into„possession of: the. property.; , idea •or putting this, in the: deed was that the Siraco. land should , stay , in the Simco name.• ; 7 , . Torn Simco • -andl , his;; ;wife,".IVa Simco, ; 'brought ;thiS Suit in; the Crawfdrd , Chancery ' .COurt against the Appellants,;asking that. the 'deed be .ref brmed * se las to Speak Llle q rrith, =by -striking- therefrom the—expression —i and-heirs of his body" Wherever it . 'appears; in . the deed, and that the deed be : reformed; and . 'corrected so as, to ,shOw that the lands were conveyed 'in fee. simple as the. deed shoWed . originally. : A:!guardian ad' lit ei g was :appbinted for , ;the, minors, , and; , filed . answer' , denYing. 'the • 'material allegations in the complaint. The appellants, Al SimcO and Lena Simco; and Alma , Lee Simmons,. filed no ,answer and . irip4.e no.defense. • !, ....The facts are,practically . undisputed,- and the 'only question; is ;whether the- grantor i after executing,: acknowl:
520 SIMMONS V. SIMCO. [192 edging and delivering the deed, had the right to make the change by adding in the deed the words above quoted. The chancellor entered a decree correcting the record to make it speak the truth by striking out the words "the heirs of his body" wherever they appeared in the deed, and corrected the deed so as to make it read as it did when originally executed and delivered. The case is here on appeal. After a deed is executed, acknowledged and delivered to the grantee and the grantee takes possession of the property, the grantor does not have the power thereafter to change such interests without the grantees' consent, and, in order to change the title to the property in any way, it is necessary for the grantee to convey to the grantor. In other words, after a deed has been executed, acknowledged and delivered, the title vests in the grantee, and there is nothing the grantor can do to divest the title out of the grantee. "After a deed has passed title to the grantee, it has performed its office as an instrument of conveyance, and its continued existence is not necessary to the continuance of title in the grantee, and the estate remains in him until it has passed to another by some mode of conveyance recognized by law. Therefore the destruction of a deed of conveyance by or at the instance of the grantee, does not reinvest the grantor with a legal title." 18 C. J. 406; 8 R. C. L. 1028; Strawn v. Norris et al., 21 Ark. 80; Campbell v. Jones, 52 Ark. 493, 12 S. W. 1016; Ames v. Ames, 80 Ark. 8, 96 S. W. 144; White v. Moffett, 108 Ark. 490, 158 S. W. 505. If the grantor could change a deed after it had been delivered by inserting the words that were inserted in this deed, he could make any other change that he desired, but the law will not permit the grantor to make any change in the deed after it has -been delivered. It is not contended in this case that the grantee consented to the change. Appellant argues that it was the intention of tbe grantor to convey this property to Tom Simco during his life. There is, however, no evidence in the record tending to show any such intention. It is also argued
ARK . 521 that the deed was a gift. It may have been, but the deed itself shows the consideration to be $1 and other valuable considerations; but a grantor would have no more right. to change the deed after delivery if it were a gift than he would if its market value had been paid, for it. The chancery court was correct in ordering the changes in the deed so as to make it read as it originally did, and the decree is therefore affirmed.
You are being directed to the most recent version of the statute which may not be the version considered at the time of the judgment.