Brtek v. Cihal

At their mother Agnes's direction, Joe took title to a family farm and then deeded it to himself and his sister Martha as joint tenants, but the deed was never given to Martha or recorded — Agnes simply kept it in her dresser, and evidence suggested Agnes intended the farm to pass to Martha only after Joe's death. After Joe died, Agnes gave Martha the deed and told her the farm was hers; Martha later deeded the farm to herself and her husband Lad (defendants) as joint tenants. Years later, Martha tried to evict her brother Jerry (plaintiff), who had continued living on the farm, and Jerry sued to cancel the original deed from Joe to Joe and Martha. The trial court found Martha and Lad held valid title, and Jerry appealed.