Mahrenholz v. County Board of School Trustees

In 1941, the Huttons deeded 1.5 acres to the Trustees of School District No. 1 (defendants), providing the land "was to be used for school purposes only; otherwise to revert to [g]rantors"; the school district built and used the Hutton School there until 1973, after which the land was used only for storage. The Huttons had separately (and, per statute, ineffectively) attempted to convey their reversionary interest to the Jacqmains in 1941, who purported to convey it to the Mahrenholzes (plaintiffs) in 1959; upon the Huttons' deaths, their sole heir Harry Hutton inherited the actual reversionary interest, and in 1977 he purported to convey his interest to the Mahrenholzes. The trial court held the deed created a fee simple subject to a condition subsequent requiring Harry to have affirmatively retaken the land in 1973 (which he never did), and dismissed the Mahrenholzes' quiet-title complaint; they appealed.