Humphrey v. C.G. Jung Educational Center
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
714 F.2d 477 (1983)
In 1920, the Humphrey and Caldwell families (plaintiffs' predecessors) sold Lot F, restricting it to residential use and calling the restrictions covenants running with the land, while also stating the property could revert to the grantors if they elected upon a violation. Both families stopped owning any Block 8 property after 1942. Decades later, Lot F passed through several owners who converted the residence into commercial galleries; descendants of the Humphrey family (plaintiffs) sued, arguing the deed created a condition subsequent letting them reclaim title, while the defendants argued it was merely a covenant limiting remedies to injunctive relief or damages. The trial court ruled for the defendants.
Whether a deed provision restricting property use is a condition subsequent, allowing the original grantor to reclaim title upon violation, only if the deed's language clearly and unequivocally creates that condition rather than a mere covenant.