Vohs v. Williams

KENNARD, J., Dissenting.

Under California law, an interest in real property can be transferred only in writing. Ordinarily, the document transferring the interest must be signed by the donor, but a judicially created rule upholds conveyances signed by an “amanuensis”; that is, one who performs a “mechanical function” in signing the donor’s name.

In this case, a woman claiming to be an amanuensis signed her father’s name to a deed conveying a joint tenancy interest in her father’s house to herself. The majority holds that the transaction is valid. I disagree.

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Civil Code section 1091 states: “An…